University of Groningen Thermotropic liquid crystals from engineered polypeptides Pesce, Diego IMPORTANT NOTE: You are advised to consult the publisher's version (publisher's PDF) if you wish to cite from it. Please check the document version below. Document Version Publisher's PDF, also known as Version of record Publication date: 2015 Link to publication in University of Groningen/UMCG research database Citation for published version (APA): Pesce, D. (2015). Thermotropic liquid crystals from engineered polypeptides [Groningen]: University of Groningen Copyright Other than for strictly personal use, it is not permitted to download or to forward/distribute the text or part of it without the consent of the author(s) and/or copyright holder(s), unless the work is under an open content license (like Creative Commons). Take-down policy If you believe that this document breaches copyright please contact us providing details, and we will remove access to the work immediately and investigate your claim. Downloaded from the University of Groningen/UMCG research database (Pure): http://www.rug.nl/research/portal. For technical reasons the number of authors shown on this cover page is limited to 10 maximum. Download date: 29-09-2017
Chapter 8 Acknowledgments
It is difficult to express my gratitude for all the people that made this thesis possible without forgetting someone but I will do my best and I apologize in case I will forget anyone! I would like to start expressing my gratitude to Prof. Andreas Herrmann for giving me the great opportunity to do a PhD in his group and for trusting in me until the end. Andreas, I have learnt a lot from you and certainly I will miss our colorful and intense discussions. Thanks to Prof. H. Börner, Prof. Y. H. Geerts and Prof. K. Loos of the assessment committee for taking the time to read my thesis. We are not islands and all our actions are somehow interconnected with other people, so they are our successes. If this thesis exists it is because of all the people that I have encountered along my journey. In this journey Groningen represents an important chapter. It is not only the place where I did my PhD but also a place now in which I feel at home. Thanks to Groningen for being such a beautiful and inspiring city. Thanks to everyone in the PCBE group for being always nice and helpful. Jan Willem, you are amazing and without you my life in the Netherlands would have never neither started, I love the way you are, always able to smile and help everybody Thanks! Thanks also to you Agnieszka for your kindness and time. Thanks to Deepak, which was part of the small initial family that PCBE was when I first joined. Thanks for your wisdom your extreme diplomacy and all the time we spent together. Minseok, thank you for picking me up in Groningen station the very first day I came and above all thanks for all your kwak-abilities. Anke you thought me how to be in the lab, without you I would have never managed to survive in front of the bench, infinite is the gratitude that I have for you Thanks! Alessio what can I say? I do not find the words for describing our adventure together GRAZIE! Sei una persona speciale e sarai sempre il mio solipsista preferito, ho imparato tanto con te negli ultimi anni, tutto quello che abbiamo condiviso fa parte di una delle piu belle lezioni di vita che abbia mai avuto. Il tuo aiuto inestimabile e i tuoi consigli unici mi hanno permesso di arrivare fino alla fine di questo PhD. Спасибо Alina for all the discussions and fun time in the lab and at home. Thank you Freddo for all the time we spent together and for your hospitality. 142
Thank you Andreas for all the time spent together, in the lab and in the gym we always found the way to push and motivate each other. Thank you Andrew! What a fortune was to meet you and had the chance to share some time with you, a great scientist, gentlemen and cook. It was a pleasure to meet, during PhD, Jan and Tobias, thanks for all the tips in the lab and the beers and drinks outside the lab. The amazing and ever-growing Chinese community leaded and pioneered by Life has been always kind and available. Kai, my great and most collaborator, thank you! It is so nice that at the end our collaboration went so well. Thank you Mark for all the help in the lab and for finally making me understanding how to manage and organize a lab! A lot of people in the department deserve attention and gratitude for all the time spent in break room with cakes and coffees and during borrels and BBQ. Jacob, Martin, Ivana, Ralph, Milica and Dejan. Thanks to Prof. Anna Hirsch for our collaboration and help and Massimo for the delicious meals! Bedankt Karin for all the help during the whole PhD especially at the beginning and end, you are the best secretary ever! Thanks to the collaborators from Ulm Prof. Tanja Weill and Yuzhou for the fruitful work and discussions. Many people that contributed to this thesis are not from the University of Groningen but still they were able to give their essential contribution. Grazie Bibbo per il tuo supporto fisico e psicologico continuo, tu mi insegni in continuazione come essere un buon scienziato rigoroso ed umile. Grazie a Vikingo e Ciccio per essere sempre stati pronti e disponibili nei momenti del bisogno. Thank you Dina for your help and for all the kind words, support and encouragement. Bedankt broertje Oeslof for being always there to listen to me and for all the time we shared together. Il ringraziamento piu speciale va ai miei genitori, a voi è dedicata questa tesi, estrema sintesi di ciò che anche voi con me avete raggiunto, emblema del fatto che i miei successi sono anche i vostri, a voi sono grato per avermi sostenuto ed incoraggiato in questo percorso e sopratutto per avermi reso intellattualmente libero ed indipendente. Grazie! My mind inevitably goes to my beloved sister. Every time I achieve something in life, I cannot avoid thinking and dedicating my efforts to you. I 143
wish you were here to share with me the joy and I know you would have been always proud of me. Last but definitely not least I would like to express my gratitude to my wife Lucia. Grazie per avermi amato, sostenuto e sopportato durante tutto questo periodo. Grazie per aver creduto in questa avventura ed averla condivisa con me. Senza di te non avrei mai superato gli ostacoli incontrati durante questo cammino e questa tesi non sarebbe di certo esistita. Grazie! Finally, I would like to thank you that are holding and reading this thesis! Thanks! Bedankt! Grazie! Danke! Gracias! Спасибо! 謝謝 ध"यव द 144