Eda discovered Margherita Hack on a TV show hosted by Piero Angela. This changed Eda's life. Margherita as a young scientist had a rough time in a profession where men were the important ones and had little regard for women.

Vittorio De Sica, along with other filmmakers and actors, does not want to be transferred to Venice, as has been mandated by the State. There, he would have to shoot propaganda movies for the Fascists. Luckily a Catholic film company wants to make a movie about a train of sick and deformed people on their way to seek miracles at the shrine of Our Lady of Loreto, a popular pilgrimage destination in the Marches region. The kind of train that carries pilgrims is called un treno bianco (a white train).

A car problem allows us to meet Eda Gjergo, a young astrophysicist, who will in turn lead us to meet Margherita Hack, the subject of this episode about women luminaries. Hack was a famous scientist, communicator, and activist.

When the Americans bombed Rome in 1943, Maria was shooting a film in the San Lorenzo area, right where the freight yards were, the target of the bombing. Vittorio, on the other side of town, rushed to the site. Life would soon become extremely complicated and dangerous for those in the film industry.

The documentary concludes with some valuable advice from Rita Levi-Montalcini about how to live one's life. People who knew her offer some adjectives to describe who she was.

Vittorio De Sica did different kinds of movies, both as an actor, and a director, and had great success, although critics appreciated his comedies more than his serious movies. Whatever kind of film he was directing, he laughed and cried along with the actors. They loved him.

In her final years, Rita Levi-Montalci was very, very frail, but she never lost her combative spirit. Romano Prodi recalls the last time he saw her.

This documentary about the life of Vittorio De Sica, Italian actor and film director, is narrated by Marco Paolini. We begin during the occupation by the Nazis. Vittorio is in Rome shooting a film.

Not only did she win a Nobel prize; in her own country, she was appointed as a Senator for life, a great honor. But she took that job seriously and participated actively and with integrity. Not everyone appreciated that.

After winning the Nobel prize, Rita Levi-Montalcini was not as shy as she had been prior to that moment. Because she stood out as a woman in a "man's world," she was able to use her unique position to make her mark, not only in the science world, but in society.

Rita Levi Montalcini doesn't feel like she made any sacrifices in her life, including not having a family. She had a clear vision of what she wanted out of life, and she followed it.

The formal, ceremonious aspect of the Nobel Prize awards was not what Rita Levi-Montalcini was used to, but she used that recognition to her advantage. Winning the Nobel Prize wasn't necessarily the high point in her career.

Because of the racial laws in Italy during the period of Fascism, many Jews left the country, including Rita Levi Montalcini. In Italy she wasn't allowed to work or publish papers, but somehow, she found a way to keep going.

Rita Levi Montalcini was a strong proponent of education and instruction as the means to gain freedom. She was also an example of it. This segment describes a visit to women in prison, and the obstacles Montalcini had to face, as a woman and as a Jew, during the Nazi-Fascist regime.

As a child, Rita Levi Montalcini was shy and insecure. Her father wanted her to get married and have children, but she had other plans for her life. She also had a twin sister who was an artist.