During my scientific career, I have developed several aspects of the theory of gravity that are related to gravitational waves. After working for a few years on the data analysis of the gravitational experiment with resonant bars at the University of Rome, during the years 1984-90 I studied exact solutions of Einstein's equations that describe plane gravitational waves and their non linear interaction. In 1983 I started working with prof. S.Chandrasekhar, first on exact solutions of Einstein's equations, and later, from 1990 to 1995, on a new formulation of the theory of stellar perturbations, which brought to light new phenomena regarding the emission of gravitational waves. We collaborated for thirteen years during which I was frequently visiting the Fermi Institute of The University of Chicago, where I also taught PhD courses in General Relativity. With my group in Rome we are currently studying gravitational wave sources, mainly neutron stars and black holes; we develop the theory of gravity and numerically integrate the equations that describe various astrophysical phenomena in which these sources are involved, with the aim of computing the features of the gravitational signals they emit.

I am the national coordinator of a project (acronymous OG51), financed by INFN (Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare) for the study of the theory and phenomenology of gravitational wave sources in support of gravitational wave experiments. In the past ten years I have been elected Member of the Committee of the International Society on General Relativity and Gravitation, of the Directive Committee of the Italian Society of Gravitational Physics and of the Executive Board of the Virgo-EGO Scientific Forum (VESF). I am actually member of the Board of the Gravitational Physics Section (GPS) of the European Physical Society (EPS). I have been Editor of the International Journal of Modern Physics D, and I am currently a member of the Editorial Board of the Journal Classical and Quantum Gravity. I have been the director of the Doctorate School in Physics of the University of Rome "La Sapienza" for three years (2005-2007). Since September 2008, I have been the coordinator of the Virgo-EGO Scientific Forum (VESF).