Medicina

Medicina is an Italian comune with c. 16,000 inhabitants in the province of Bologna, part of the region of Emilia-Romagna. Name The origins of its name (in Italian it means "medicine") are quite uncertain and many hypotheses have been made on it. A legend tells that the Emperor Frederick Barbarossa, passing through Medicina from Milan fell ill and miraculously recovered from this illness because of a snake that accidentally came into the pot of his soup. It has been proved, though, that the name of the town dates back to the time before the passage of Barbarossa, that indeed happened though. In memory of this legend every year the "Festa del Barbarossa" takes place on the 3rd weekend of September. Science Near Medicina (in the village of Fiorentina) there is a radio observatory named "Croce del Nord" (Cross of the North), made up of an aerial, 32 metres (105 ft) long, and of a much wider "cross". It is operated by the Istituto di Radioastronomia di Bologna (Institute for Radio Astronomy of Bologna), created by the CNR (National association for Research) and now part of the INAF and there is an identical one in Noto, Sicily. Sport Medicina has a football and a basketball team, both playing in lower leagues, as well as a cycling team and a cycling development center for youth. In August 2010 Medicina hosted six matches of the 2010 ICC World Cricket League Division Four, organised by Italy. A famous sport person from Medicina is Giovanni Caprara, trainer of the Russian women volleyball team which won the World Championship in 2006. Twin towns Škofja Loka, Slovenia Romilly-sur-Seine, France External links Official website Official site of the Municipal Band of Medicina (in Italian).