neuroscientist / adventurer / musician / philosopher
Welcome to the world of Marcello Costa!
Marcello Costa FAA, AO, Cav. Rep. It
Matthew Flinders Distinguished Emeritus Professor
9 January 1940 – 14 April 2024
Marcello Costa was born in Torino (Turin, Italy) in 1940 where obtained his Medical Degree (Laurea in Medicina e Chirurgia) in 1967. He was consumed by a fascination with science from an early age, selling his bicycle when he was a child to buy a microscope, so that he could study bugs. He studied medicine simply because it was the best pathway available to study the nervous system.
After migrating to Australia in 1970 to escape political unrest in Italy, he helped found the new discipline of neuroscience and was one of the foundation lecturers at the Flinders Medical School in South Australia.
From its founding, the medical school had a progressive approach: it abolished the distinction between teaching and research disciplines and recognised the importance of the various branches of medical science working together. Despite many changes in the medical school over the years, Marcello maintained this philosophy throughout his career. Until he retired in 2023, he held a personal chair in Neurophysiology, the first in Australia.
Marcello helped build a substantial international reputation for Flinders in neuroscience research. He made a range of landmark discoveries about the role of neurons in driving the activity of the gut. Indeed, he published over 230 scientific papers in international journals, 55 reviews and chapters and written two books in enteric neuroscience and gastrointestinal motor functions. His research received uninterrupted funding by national and international granting bodies since his arrival at Flinders University in 1975.
He was one of the founders of the Australian Neuroscience Society (ANS), of which he was President during the 1990s. He was foundation co-chair of the South Australian Neuroscience Institute (SANI) from 2003 to 2010.
Marcello was a dedicated teacher of neuroscience at undergraduate level, postgraduate level and to the general public, having developed and implemented a wide variety of teaching programs both on and off campus.
Marcello was passionate about using neuroscience to overcome the traditional divide between the sciences and humanities: “Our neurological systems link us to everything we do, shaping our thoughts, culture, intellectual capacity, emotions and our bodily functions. There is no area of science more important to understand, in my view.”
He wrote numerous articles on more general implication of Neuroscience in society and participated in numerous public events on the relevance of Neuroscience to diverse human activities. He gave many talks on the philosophy of Neuroscience.
Outside the laboratory, Marcello was, amongst other things, an adventurer and a musician. Growing up in Argentina, he developed the dual passions of mountain climbing and alpine exploration. After arriving in South Australia, he began many years of windsurfing, winning races and completing some daring long-distance sails. He also was an accomplished guitarist and singer, with a large repertoire of South American, Italian and jazz classics.
Click here to see Marcello’s videos about art and neuroscience.
Click here to see videos of Marcello’s adventures in the mountains.
Click here to listen to some of Marcello’s music.
Click here to see more about Marcello’s windsurfing exploits.
All of these pursuits have culminated in his extended essay One Physics for World and Mind: A framework for understanding the physical nature of the mind which you can read on this website.
Marcello died peacefully on 14th April 2024, surrounded by his family at his home overlooking his beloved seaside.