The Italian explorer and airship designer Umberto Nobile (1885-1978) was a pioneer in Arctic aviation. His dirigible flight over the North Pole encouraged greater use of aircraft in the Arctic. Umberto Nobile was born in Lauro, Italy, near Naples on...

1885-1978 Italian engineer, air force officer, and explorer who designed and built dirigibles, and made numerous expeditions to the Arctic. During one expedition with Roald Amundsen in 1926, Nobile piloted the first dirigible—and the second...

Umberto Nobile (January 21, 1885 – July 30, 1978) was an Italian aeronautical engineer and Arctic explorer. Nobile is primarily remembered for having piloted the airship Norge that was the first aircraft both to reach the North Pole, and to cross...

The status of the nobility during England's reign of Tudors was modified rather than reduced. Policy changes such as prohibitions against retaining, military recruitment and the appointment of administrators shifted power but did not eradicate it. Social factors also contributed to the shift, including...

ELEANOR WACHTEL is the host of CBC Radio's Writers & Company and The Arts Today. This interview was initially prepared in collaboration with Mary Stinson and broadcast on Writers & Company. Umberto Eco, you grew up in a small town in northern...