Encouraging scientific activity has a venerable history. Monarchs and wealthy patrons periodically rewarded natural scientists with valuable gifts or lifelong pensions for their discoveries, which allowed them to continue work at a new level. However, such encouragement acquired a systematic character with the establishment of prizes awarded by scientific academies for solving special problems. The leadership here belongs to the British Royal Society. In 1709, Sir Godfrey Copley, a wealthy baronet landowner and public figure, before his death bequeathed the establishment of a fund from which one hundred pounds would be transferred annually to the society to finance experiments or other activities aimed at “the development of the knowledge of nature.”
After lengthy discussion, members of the society decided to use the funds for a prize that would be awarded for outstanding scientific achievement. The winner received not only one hundred pounds, but also the original Copley medal. The first recipient of the medal was determined in 1731: it was Stephen Gray for the discovery of the transmission of electricity over a distance. A year later, he also “took” the second prize - for fundamental experiments with electricity, which made it possible to divide all substances into conductors and insulators. The Copley Medal is still awarded today, and the prize money has increased to £5,000. Among its laureates were Russian scientists: Dmitry Mendeleev, Ilya Mechnikov and Ivan Pavlov.
Another famous prize emerged from the will. Her story is no less interesting.
Death Dealer is dead
Alfred Bernhard Nobel was born in 1833 into the family of engineer Emmanuel Nobel. In 1842, the family moved from Stockholm to St. Petersburg, where Emmanuel began developing sea mines. It was in Russia that young Alfred first showed an inventive spirit and enlisted the support of authoritative scientists: on the advice of chemist Nikolai Zinin, his father sent him to study in France. The prosperity of the Nobel family was facilitated by the outbreak of the Crimean War in 1853; she also prompted Alfred to take up explosives. In the early 1860s, returning to St. Petersburg, he created explosives based on nitroglycerin and opened a plant for its production in Sweden. In 1865 he invented and patented a metal capsule for a cartridge, in 1867 - dynamite, called “Nobel’s safe explosive powder”. The business turned out to be profitable. Although Nobel later became involved in the transportation and production of iron, in the eyes of the public he remained a military-industrial magnate, because at that time he owned 93 enterprises in Europe and the United States, which were exclusively engaged in the production of explosives.
In 1888, an unpleasant incident occurred. The inventor's brother Ludwig died, but by mistake European newspapers published an obituary for Alfred. After reading a note in a French newspaper entitled “The Merchant of Death is Dead,” Nobel thought about what kind of glory he would leave behind and decided to change his will. It was drawn up on November 27, 1895, and announced in January 1897 (the inventor himself died on December 10, 1896). The will says:
All my movable and immovable property must be converted by my executors into liquid assets, and the capital thus collected must be placed in a reliable bank. The income from the investments should belong to a fund, which will distribute them annually in the form of bonuses to those who, during the previous year, have brought the greatest benefit to humanity ... The specified interest must be divided into five equal parts, which are intended: one part - to the one who makes the most important discovery or invention in the field of physics; the other - to the one who makes the most important discovery or improvement in the field of chemistry; the third - to the one who makes the most important discovery in the field of physiology or medicine; the fourth - to the one who creates the most outstanding literary work of an idealistic direction; fifth, to the one who has made the most substantial contribution to the unity of nations, the abolition of slavery, or the reduction of existing armies, and the promotion of peace congresses... It is my particular wish that the nationality of the candidates shall not be taken into account in the awarding of prizes.
Although numerous relatives of the inventor tried to challenge the will, it came into force. The first Nobel Prizes were awarded in 1901. Their laureates were Wilhelm Roentgen (physics), Jacob Hendrik van't Hoff (chemistry), Emil von Behring (physiology and medicine), René Sully-Prudhomme (literature), Jean Dunant and Frederic Passy (promoting world peace). The cash content of the awards in those years was 150,000 Swedish kronor, but has grown steadily, reaching today an amount of over a million in dollar equivalent. The laureates are also awarded a corresponding diploma and a medal with the image of Alfred Nobel. In 1969, on the initiative of the Swedish Bank, a nomination for achievements in the field of economic science was established, but the prize was not expanded further. The board of the Nobel Foundation decided not to increase the number of nominations.
Why are the awards given?
Since the beginning of the twentieth century, the procedure and ceremony for awarding the prize have become more complex until they have reached a certain perfection. Every year, the Nobel Committee sends out over three thousand requests for nominations to specialists working in the relevant field, professors, rectors and former committee members. Based on the answers, a list of three hundred candidates is formed, which remains secret for fifty years. The final selection of laureates is carried out with the participation of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, the Swedish Academy and the Nobel Assembly of the Karolinska Institute. The names of the laureates are announced in advance in October, and the award ceremony is held on December 10 in the capitals of two countries - Sweden and Norway. In Stockholm, prizes are awarded in scientific and literary categories, in Oslo - a prize in the field of peace protection. In addition to the ceremony, lectures by the laureates, a banquet and a concert are held.
Nobel Media AB 2015
The 2016 Nobel Prize, as is customary, is awarded on December 10. The names of the laureates are traditionally announced in advance. It must be said that every year it becomes more and more difficult to explain to ordinary people why this or that discovery awarded a prize is of great importance for world science, because the specialization of research is growing, and many achievements have a very specific meaning. For example, in the “Physics” category, three British scientists became laureates: David Thouless, Duncan Haldane and John Kosterlitz - with the wording “for the theoretical discoveries of topological phase transitions and topological phases of matter.” What does it mean? The question takes us back to the 1970s, when a series of papers written by the laureates stimulated the development of a new direction in the study of condensed matter. Such media are called collections of particles of the same type connected by strong interaction: liquids, crystals, amorphous bodies, etc. Their study showed that with the external simplicity of the structure, many dynamic effects can be identified that arise as a result of the “collective existence” of particles. The laureates' contribution was the development of a model of phase transitions (from crystal to liquid, from liquid to gas) inside condensed matter, and the occurrence of the transition, as they suggested, is determined by the geometry of the medium at the level of the relative position of individual particles. The model turned out to be convenient for describing the physics of very exotic processes: helium superfluidity in thin films, magnetism in layered materials, integer quantum Hall effect and many others. It was recently implemented in a direct experiment, which became the reason for the award.
Nobel Media AB 2016
Three scientists also became laureates in the Chemistry category: Frenchman Jean-Pierre Sauvage, Scotsman Sir James Stoddard and Dutchman Bernard Feringa. The prize was awarded "for the design and synthesis of molecular machines." We are talking here about molecules that are created from scratch to solve specific problems, without trying to imitate nature. Moreover, the current laureates have come up with several schemes that can be used to “assemble” arbitrarily complex molecular “constructions” in the future. For example, Sauvage and Stoddard made mechanically linked molecules: catenanes (rings rotating relative to each other) and rotaxanes (ring moving along a straight base). Based on these schemes, a “molecular elevator”, “molecular muscles” and even an artificial ribosome capable of synthesizing proteins were built. Feringa proposed a “molecular motor” in which two spinning parts of a molecule interact through a carbon-carbon covalent bond. The most spectacular use of a “motor” has been demonstrated in a “nanomachine” that is capable of driving independently on a gold substrate, carrying a complex molecule as a load.
Nobel Media AB 2016
The prize in the “Physiology and Medicine” category was received by the Japanese Yoshinori Ohsumi for the discovery and deciphering of the mechanism of autophagy (from the ancient Greek “eating oneself”) - the process of lysosomal processing of organelles and protein complexes inside a living cell. Having begun to study the phenomenon back in the 1980s, the scientist was able to reveal its biochemical and genetic nature, as well as prove the universality of the mechanism for any organisms. After his work, we can say that we now know how the process of recycling “spoiled” cell elements develops, and we can even control this process, which in the future may help in the fight against aging diseases.
Nobel Media AB 2016
In the “Economics” category, the award was “taken” by the American Oliver Hart and the Swede Bengt Holmström with the wording “for their contribution to the theory of contracts.” The work of these economists has wide practical application; on their basis, for example, modern European bankruptcy legislation was formed.
The Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos Calderon, who ended the civil war in his country that lasted more than half a century. Probably, only this award does not raise questions.
In the Literature category, the famous American rock musician Bob Dylan (Robert Zimmerman) unexpectedly became the laureate. And here no long explanation is required: just listen to his wonderful composition Things Have Changed.
Nobel Media AB 2016
Since 1991, the Nobel Prize has had an evil twin - the “Ig Nobel Prize” for dubious achievements, which tabloids love to publish under the heading “British scientists have proven.” In 2016, among the laureates were Thomas Thwaites, who studied animal behavior and imitated them himself (grazing for three days with mountain goats), and the Volkswagen automobile company received the chemistry prize for its method of faking exhaust emissions tests. Despite this, the Nobel Prize still remains the most authoritative, recognizable and important scientific prize in the world - and all its winners will sooner or later influence our lives.
According to Nobel himself, the honor of being awarded the Peace Prize should be to the person who made the “most significant contribution” to the abolition of slavery, the unification of nations, “the promotion of peace congresses” and the reduction of the number of world armies.
The Nobel Committee, located in Oslo, awards this prize by selecting the laureate from among nominees proposed by members of the committee itself - current and former, governments of various states, the International Court of Arbitration in The Hague, the Institute of International Law, other peace prize laureates, and professors from reputable universities. The selection process takes more than a year, and the potential winner of the award is not aware of his status, and information about candidates for the award is not disclosed for another half a century.
Special nomination
The Nobel Peace Prize is the only award that can be nominated not only by an individual, but also by a public organization.
The maximum number of awards to date awarded to one laureate was given in the “peace prize” category - the achievements of the International Committee of the Red Cross were noted three times.
The largest number of female laureates is represented in the field of peacekeeping and legal activities.
Fifteen times the Peace Prize was not awarded to any of the nominees, because the Nobel Committee did not see truly worthy candidates among them.
Peace Prize Laureates
The first award in this category in 1901 was shared between two figures. The first is Henri Dunant - a philanthropist, the actual founder of the International Committee of the Red Cross, opposed to slavery, defending the rights of prisoners of war - “for his contribution to the peaceful cooperation of peoples.” The second is Frédéric Passy, a political economist who opposes any armed conflicts due to their economic inefficiency, calling for the resolution of international contradictions through arbitration - “for many years of peacekeeping efforts.”
The Nobel Peace Prize was received over the years by Martin Luther King, Andrei Sakharov, Mother Teresa, Henry Kissinger, the Dalai Lama, Mikhail Gorbachev, Nelson Mandela, Kofi Annan, Yasser Arafat, Jimmy Carter, Al Gore, and Barack Obama. Among the organizations whose activities were recognized with this award are UNICEF, IAEA, Doctors Without Borders, UN Peacekeeping Forces, EU, and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons.
Among the discoveries whose authors were awarded the Nobel Prize are X-rays, penicillin and the hadron collider. Nobel Peace Prize laureates include Nelson Mandela, the 14th Dalai Lama. Gabriel García Márquez, Selma Lagerlöf, Ernest Hemingway are just some of the outstanding writers who have been awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (most recently, she became one of the Nobel Prize winners). The prize has been awarded since 1901 in five categories: physics, chemistry, physiology and medicine, literature, and for achievements in the field of peacekeeping. The award ceremony takes place annually on the same day – December 10th. Laureates in the first five categories come to the capital of Sweden from all over the world in order to receive a gold medal and a cash prize.
After the ceremony, they will be treated to a magnificent banquet at the city hall, where, in addition to the laureates and members of their families, royalty, the Prime Minister and representatives of parliament and a number of high-ranking guests from different countries are invited. The Nobel Peace Prize, however, is awarded not in Stockholm, but at the Oslo Opera House on the same day.
Alfred Nobel's legacy
The Nobel Prize is the property of the Swedish scientist, inventor and entrepreneur Alfred Nobel (1833-1896). It was he who bequeathed his entire fortune to the creation of a fund, funds from which should be awarded to those who during the past year made a special contribution to the history of mankind. At the same time, Nobel insisted that this award be given to outstanding scientists, writers and public figures, regardless of their country of origin.
Inventor, philosopher, entrepreneur
Alfred Nobel was born in Stockholm, the son of inventor and industrialist Emmanuel Nobel, whose restless energy and entrepreneurial ambitions later brought the Nobel family to St. Petersburg. There, Nobel's father worked on the development of torpedoes, and also soon became interested in experiments in creating explosives. The son of Emmanuel Nobel, Alfred, soon became interested in these experiments. Already at the age of 17, he declared himself as a gifted chemist. By the way, Alfred Nobel did not graduate from higher educational institutions, but he received an excellent education thanks to the private teachers his father found for him. He subsequently studied chemistry in Paris and also in the United States. By the end of his life, he was the owner of 355 patents for various inventions. Nobel managed to live and work, in addition to his native Sweden, in Russia, France, Great Britain, Germany and Italy. He spoke fluently in five languages: Russian, English, German, French and Swedish. In addition, he was a great fan of literature, wrote poetry and composed plays.
Laureates 2019
Chemistry
John B. Goodenough, Germany
M. Stanley Whittingham, UK
Akira Yoshino, Japan
"For the development of lithium-ion batteries."
Literature
In 2019, the winners of two Nobel Prizes in Literature were announced: for 2019, and also for 2018 (in 2018 the Nobel Prize in Literature was not awarded).
Olga Tokarczuk, Poland
Peter Handke, Austria
Physics
James Peebles, Canada
Michel Maillot, Switzerland
Didier Queloz, Switzerland
"For the discovery of an exoplanet in orbit around a Sun-like star."
Medicine and physiology
William Kalin, USA
Peter Ratcliffe, UK
Gregg Semenza, USA
"For his research into how cells sense and adapt to lack of oxygen."
Nobel Peace Prize
Abiy Ahmed Ali, Ethiopia
"For their efforts to resolve the border conflict with Eritrea."
Economic Prize in Memory of Alfred Nobel
Abhijit Banerjee, India
Esther Duflo, France
Michael Kremer, USA
"For an experimental approach to eradicating global poverty."
Alfred Nobel. Photo: The Nobel Foundation
The Godfather of Dynamite
His name is primarily associated with the invention of dynamite, a powerful explosive that began to be actively used in construction and the military industry during Nobel’s lifetime. This invention, behind which Alfred Nobel stood, became one of the engines of the industrial era. A certain paradox lies in the fact that Nobel, having contributed to the invention of explosives and modern weapons, was at the same time a pacifist and recklessly believed that the creation of powerful weapons would inevitably lead to humanity’s abandonment of weapons. Many believe that Nobel bequeathed his entire fortune to the establishment of the prize, because he was burdened by his involvement in deadly inventions and wanted to rehabilitate his name after death.
Why in Norway?
In his will, Nobel insisted that the Peace Prize be awarded in Oslo, however, he left no explanation as to why there. Someone even tried to suggest that he chose Norway because he admired the talent of the Norwegian poet Bjornesterne Bjornson (who, by the way, later became a Nobel Prize laureate in literature), but there is still no serious evidence in favor of this version.
In 1905, Austrian Baroness Bertha von Suttner became the first female Nobel Peace Prize laureate, receiving the award in recognition of her services to the peace movement in Austria and Germany. In addition, Bertha was well acquainted with Nobel; they maintained a heartfelt correspondence until the end of Alfred’s life. It is known that it was she who inspired the inventor to have the Nobel Prize awarded in this category.
Later, Theodore Roosevelt (1906), Martin Luther King (1964), Mother Teresa (1979) became Nobel Peace Prize laureates, and in 1993 the prize was divided into two: Nelson Mandela and Frederik Willem de Klerk were awarded for the overthrow of the apartheid regime in South Africa. Africa.
54 women
Over the more than hundred-year history of the Nobel Prize - from 1901 to 2019 - women have become laureates 54 times. Marie Curie was awarded twice - in physics in 1903, and in chemistry in 1911.
In total, in the entire history of the award we can count:
17 Women Nobel Peace Prize Laureates
15 women winners of the Nobel Prize in Literature
12 – in medicine and physiology
5 – in chemistry
3 – in physics
2 – Economic Prize in Memory of Alfred Nobel.
In total, from 1901 to 2019, about 950 individuals and organizations became Nobel Prize laureates. To be more precise, 923 prizes were awarded to individuals, 27 to organizations (some received the Nobel Prize several times).
Refused the Nobel Prize
Among the laureates who refused the honorary award and never appeared at the Stockholm City Hall to receive the coveted prize are the writer Jean-Paul Sartre and Boris Pasternak. The first neglected the prize because, on principle, he refused any form of public recognition of his talent, and the second was forced to reject it under pressure from the Soviet government.
Winner of the 2015 Nobel Prize in Literature Svetlana Alexievich. Photo: TT
Who selects candidates and how?
Applicants for Nobel Prizes are selected and considered by several scientific institutions. Namely:
Behind Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences the right to award Nobel Prizes in physics and chemistry is secured, and the laureate of the prize in economics in memory of Alfred Nobel is also chosen there. The Academy of Sciences was founded in 1739 as an independent organization dedicated to the development of science and the practical application of discoveries. Currently, the Academy of Sciences has 450 Swedish and 175 foreign members.
Swedish Academy is a separate organization responsible for selecting candidates for the Nobel Prize in Literature. Founded in 1786, it consists of 18 members who are elected for life.
Nobel Committee at the Karolinska Institute annually awards the Nobel Prize to those who have made significant discoveries in the fields of medicine and physiology. Karolinska Institutet is the most authoritative scientific medical institution in Sweden, and the scientific community abroad also takes it into account. Applications for the Nobel Prize in Medicine are studied by 50 professors at the Karolinska Institutet, and they also select the laureates.
Norwegian Nobel Committee is responsible for presenting the Peace Prize - it is awarded to those who have made a significant contribution to “strengthening brotherhood between peoples, disarmament of armies and promoting ideas of peace.” The Norwegian Committee was founded in 1897 and consists of five members appointed by the Norwegian Parliament.
The deadline for submitting information about candidates to the Nobel Committee is always the same - January 31. Every year, the list of candidates for the prize in the fields of literature, physics, chemistry, medicine or physiology, as well as economics, established by the Swedish State Bank in 1968 in memory of Alfred Nobel, contains from 250 to 300 names, which can only be made public after 50 years. years.
On February 1, the Committee and a number of other institutions will launch a complex and secretive process for selecting applications and determining laureates. In the second week of October, the names of the winners are announced in a strict order - one per day, starting with the Nobel Laureate in Medicine on Monday and ending with the Peace Prize Laureate on Friday. The winner of the Alfred Nobel Prize in Economics will be announced next Monday. The laureates themselves, as a rule, learn about the award a few minutes before the start of the official press conferences.
The Economics Prize is not a Nobel Prize
It is worth clarifying that the Economics Prize, which is often considered a Nobel Prize, is in fact not such, since Alfred Nobel himself had nothing to do with its establishment. This is a prize for achievements in the field of economics in memory of Alfred Nobel, which has been awarded since 1968 by the Swedish Central Bank, on approximately the same principles as the Nobel Prizes.
So why is there no prize in mathematics?..
The story that the Nobel Prize in mathematics is not awarded because Alfred Nobel’s wife allegedly ran away with her mathematics teacher is, in fact, nothing more than a misconception. The fact is that Nobel was never married at all. According to Nobel's will, the prize should be awarded to those who made a discovery or invention that brought obvious benefits to all humanity. Thus, mathematics was excluded initially as an abstract science.
What is the Nobel Prize for?
Each laureate is awarded a gold medal with the recognizable silhouette of Alfred Nobel, a diploma and a cash prize, the exact amount of which is not specified, but according to existing data, it is approximately 1 million dollars or 8 million Swedish kronor. The amount may vary from year to year, and also depending on how many laureates share the award in one category.
Banquet for all banquets
The Nobel Banquet is a grandiose event that solemnly takes place every year on December 10 in the Blue Hall at Stockholm City Hall in the presence of 1,300 guests. To say that they are thoroughly preparing for this banquet means to say nothing. Hundreds of chefs working miracles in the kitchen, waiters and staff specially trained to welcome high-ranking guests from all over the world - every detail is strictly monitored here to ensure that the celebration goes smoothly. Each honoree may bring 14 guests to the banquet, in addition to spouses and partners. The banquet is always attended by one of the representatives of Alfred Nobel's family, as well as the royal family of Sweden.
The Nobel Prize is the highest award given for achievements in science, inventions and contributions to culture, as well as for the development of society. The tradition of rewarding people for their work contributing to the progress of mankind was introduced on the basis of Nobel's will. So, for what can you get the Nobel Prize, which implies the presentation of not only a memorial sign, but also a significant cash prize amounting to more than $1 million. The award is given to specialists in physics, chemistry, literature, economics, medicine, as well as for establishing peace on earth.
How to get a Nobel Prize?
People who were able to make a discovery receive such a global award, and for this they need to go through a certain path. What does it take to win a Nobel Prize:
- You need to start by obtaining higher education in the areas that were listed earlier. You will have to complete your master's degree and defend your dissertation.
- Having a candidate or doctorate degree, you need to make a discovery that will be useful for the whole world. As for literature, the work must be original and stand out from everyone else in some way. You should not expect that immediately after this you will be included in the list of applicants, since usually about 30 years pass from the moment of opening until the receipt of the award.
- After the discovery is made, you need to work on your popularity, since at least 600 leading experts should know about your work. To do this, you need to participate in various exhibitions, presentations, publish in newspapers and magazines, etc. Fame is needed so that during a survey conducted by the Nobel Committee, professionals in their field will mention you as a worthy participant.
- After this, the Nobel Committee and the Swedish Academy of Sciences conduct numerous consultations with various experts and the most worthy applicants are selected from the list obtained through a survey. After this, a vote takes place, in which members of the Nobel Committee participate, which makes it possible to determine the laureates. If a person gets on this list, he will soon receive a notification and can prepare for the Nobel lecture.
Speaking about how to get a Nobel Prize in economics, physics and other sciences, it will be interesting to look into the existing predictions by scientists for the future. For example, in physics you shouldn’t expect major discoveries in the coming years, since only the existing theory is being strengthened and expanded. Unfavorable forecasts in chemistry, so, according to the committee, it is no longer possible to make any discoveries. Biology has the greatest prospects for truly brilliant discoveries. Almost all research is carried out in the field of clones and genes.
It will also be interesting to know where the Nobel Prize is received and when the ceremony takes place. So, they gather the laureates for the awards on December 10, the day of Nobel’s death, in the capital of Sweden at the Royal Academy of Music, but the Peace Prize is given in the capital of Norway. For several years now, the Peace Prize has been awarded not for what has already been done, 
but for future achievements that will improve life.
Why don't mathematicians win the Nobel Prize?
Many are surprised by this fact, but Alfred Nobel himself decided so. There are several versions of why this happened. For example, mathematicians say that the scientist simply forgot to dictate it to the secretary, indicating the list of sciences for which a prize is worth giving, believing that this goes without saying. Some argue that Alfred excluded mathematics quite deliberately, since when creating dynamite, he did not use it, which means that science is completely unnecessary. According to the third version, having forgotten about mathematics, Nobel took revenge on his wife’s admirer, who was a famous professor of this particular science.
Nobel Prizes- annual international awards named after their founder, Swedish chemical engineer, inventor and industrialist Alfred Bernhard Nobel.
The Nobel Prize is awarded annually for achievements in the following areas of human activity:
- Physics - since 1901, Sweden;
- Chemistry - since 1901, Sweden;
- Medicine and physiology - since 1901, Sweden;
- Literature - since 1901, Sweden;
- Defense of peace - since 1901, Norway.
- Economy - since 1969, Sweden;
Will.
In 1889, a dark incident occurred that left a deep imprint on Alfred's soul. One of the journalists confused Alfred Nobel with his recently deceased brother Ludwig. In his own obituary, Alfred was called a merchant of death. It is believed that this event prompted Alfred Nobel to decide to leave something more valuable than dynamite after his death.
"I, the undersigned Alfred Bernhard Nobel, having considered and decided, hereby declare my last wishes regarding the property acquired by me at the time of my death.
(...)*
* The part of Nobel’s will that lists donations to private individuals is omitted here.
All realizable property remaining after me must be distributed as follows: my executors must transfer the capital into securities, creating a fund, the interest from which will be given in the form of a bonus to those who during the previous year have brought the greatest benefit to humanity. The said percentages should be divided into five equal parts, which are intended: the first part to the one who made the most important discovery or invention in the field of physics, the second - to the one who made a major discovery or improvement in the field of chemistry, the third - to the one who achieved outstanding success in the field of physiology or medicine, the fourth - to the one who created the most significant literary work reflecting human ideals, the fifth - to the one who will make a significant contribution to the unity of peoples, the abolition of slavery, the reduction of the number of existing armies and the promotion of a peace agreement. Prizes in physics and chemistry should be awarded by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, in physiology and medicine by the Royal Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, in literature by the Swedish Academy in Stockholm, and the peace prize by a five-member committee elected by the Norwegian Storting. My special wish is that the awarding of prizes is not influenced by the nationality of the candidate, so that the most deserving ones receive the prize, regardless of whether they are Scandinavian or not.
This will is the last and final will, it has legal force and cancels all my previous wills, if any are discovered after my death. Finally, my last mandatory requirement is that after my death, a competent doctor clearly establishes the fact of death, and only after that my body should be burned. Paris, November 27, 1895, Alfred Bernhard Nobel
Herr Alfred Bernhard Nobel, being of sound mind, voluntarily signed this will, to which we all testify in his presence, appending our signatures to this document:
Sigurd Ehrenborg, retired lieutenant,
R.V. Strelenert, civil engineer,
Tos Nordenfelt, designer,
Leonard Wass, civil engineer."
Scandal.
After the announcement of the will, a scandal broke out. One after another, lawsuits were launched. According to the most conservative estimates, the value of Nobel's property was estimated at 33,233,792 Swedish kronor (about sixty-two million pounds sterling at the current exchange rate), and all this money went to create the fund! The heirs were left with a donut hole - about two million for all. Pure nonsense, considering the number of applicants.
All of Alfred Nobel's property was scattered all over the world: a mansion in Nice, a house in Paris, countless workshops, factories and laboratories in Finland, Russia, Germany, Italy, England... To carry out the will of the deceased, they hastily put together a whole group of attorneys who, legs wandered around the world, trying to sell property without unnecessary bureaucratic delays. The situation was aggravated by the fact that during his lifetime Nobel managed to ruin relations with many governments. In France, for example, the inventor of dynamite was generally considered a military spy. And in Sweden itself the king publicly condemned him. In addition, the absent-minded Alfred did not even bother to have his will certified by a notary, which gave his relatives an excellent reason to sue for millions!
Foundation establishment.
4 years after Alfred's death in 1900, despite all the troubles, the Nobel Foundation was created.
The status of the Nobel Foundation and special rules governing the activities of the awarding institutions were promulgated at a meeting of the Royal Council on June 29, 1900 (after lengthy discussions during which various members of the organizations mentioned in the will expressed their doubts, citing the vagueness of the wording of the will) . This date can be considered the official birthday of the Foundation.
It is known that the initial capital of the Foundation amounted to about 31 million Swedish crowns, which were divided into two parts: the first - about 28 million crowns - became the main fund. With the remaining money, the Nobel Foundation purchased a building in which it is still located. The Fund's funds are replenished from income from investment activities and charitable donations.
The first Nobel Prizes were awarded on December 10, 1901. The political unity of Sweden with Norway, after lengthy debates, took shape in 1905. The current special rules for the organization awarding the Nobel Peace Prize, i.e. for the Norwegian Nobel Committee, dated April 10, 1905.
In 1968, on the occasion of its 300th anniversary, the Swedish Bank proposed a prize in the field of economics. After some hesitation, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences accepted the role of awarding institution (the Nobel Foundation board subsequently decided not to increase the number of nominations), in accordance with the same principles and rules that applied to the original Nobel Prizes. The prize, which was established in memory of Alfred Nobel, will be awarded on December 10, following the presentation of other Nobel laureates. Officially called the Alfred Nobel Prize in Economics, it was first awarded in 1969.
Procedure for awarding prizes.
A. Nobel did not leave instructions on how to select scientists for the award. The rules were developed after his death and have remained virtually unchanged since then.
The prize cannot be awarded jointly to more than three people (this was decided in 1968) and can only be awarded posthumously if the applicant was alive at the time the prize was announced (usually in October) but died before 10 December of this year (the decision was made in 1974).
Prizes are awarded not by the Nobel Foundation itself, but by special Nobel committees for each area, which play a decisive role in the process of selecting laureates. Each committee consists of five members, but may seek assistance from experts in other fields of science.
To select candidates for the prize in the field of literature, submissions are sent from specialists in the field of literature and linguistics - members of academies and societies. To obtain proposals for candidates for the Peace Prize, contacts are made with representatives of such sciences as philosophy, history, law and political science, as well as with active public figures. Some specialists receive the right to individually nominate an applicant; Among such persons are previous Nobel Prize laureates, members of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, the Nobel Assembly of the Karolinska Institute and the Swedish Academy.
Approved proposals must be received by February 1 of the award year. From this day on, the work of the Nobel Committees begins: until September, committee members and consultants evaluate the qualifications of candidates for the award. Committees meet several times, hearing proposals from various committee members and outside experts. Several thousand specialists participate in the preparatory work every year.
When the preliminary work is completed, the committee approves its reports and recommendations (remaining secret for now) on the relevant candidates and transmits them to the awarding authorities, which must alone make the final decision.
From September or early October, the Nobel Committees are ready for further work. In the fields of physics, chemistry and economic sciences they confirm their reports to the corresponding "classes" of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, each of which has about 25 members. The classes then send their recommendations to the academy for a final decision.
Procedure for awarding the Prize in Physiology and Medicine similar, except that the Nobel Committee's recommendation is sent directly to the Nobel Assembly (with 50 members) at the Karolinska Institutet.
When deciding the fate of the prize in literature The 18 members of the Swedish Academy make a decision based on a proposal from the Nobel Committee.
Decision to award the Peace Prize carried out independently by the Norwegian Nobel Committee.
In October, final elections of candidates take place in the various assemblies. The winners undergo final approval and are announced to the whole world during a press conference in Stockholm, which is attended by representatives of all major news agencies. The reasons for the award are also briefly stated. As a rule, press conferences are attended by specialists from various fields of science and technology, who can provide more complete explanations regarding the achievements of the laureates and the significance of their contribution to global progress. Subsequently, the Nobel Foundation invites the laureates and their families to Stockholm and Oslo on December 10.
Prizes in physics, chemistry, physiology and medicine, literature and economics are presented in Copenhagen in the Concert Hall by the King of Sweden, the Nobel Peace Prize is presented by the Chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee in Oslo in the presence of the King of Norway and members of the royal family.
The award includes a gold medal, a diploma and a cash award. The laureates present Nobel lectures, published in a special publication “Nobel Laureates”.
As soon as the awards ceremony for the current year's laureates ends in December, preparations begin for the election of next year's candidates.
Curiosities of the Nobel Prizes.
Archives also show that the Nobel Committee repeatedly postponed awarding the prize to Albert Einstein for the theory of relativity. Committee member A. Gullstrand, laureate of the 1911 Prize in Physiology and Medicine, believed that the theory of relativity would not stand the test of time. And a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences and the Nobel Committee for Physics, B. Hasselberg, protesting against awarding the prize to Einstein for the general theory of relativity, wrote in 1921: “It is extremely unlikely that Nobel had in mind such speculations as this.” As a result, the Academy postponed awarding the prize that year altogether. The following year, a young member of the academy, K.V. Oseen nevertheless proposed to award the 1921 prize to Einstein, but not for the theory of relativity, but for the discovery of the law of the photoelectric effect, which was proven experimentally.
In some cases, decisions to award prizes were erroneous. Thus, in 1949, the Portuguese neurosurgeon A.E. received the prize in physiology or medicine. Monitz for the brain surgery he developed in 1935 (prefrontal lobotomy). However, many doctors believed that it did more harm than good. The Portuguese government banned this operation, and then it was abandoned in other countries.
S. Jarlskog, who headed the Nobel Committee in Physics until 1999, believes that truly deserving candidates for the prize differ from random ones in that they are nominated from year to year. "It's better to take the time to award the prize than to make a mistake," she says. "However, because of the rule against awarding the prize posthumously, even the obvious candidate must be in good health to receive the prize."
Particularly criticized is the rule prohibiting the awarding of prizes in one field of science to more than three scientists at the same time. Particularly heated debates flared up three years ago, when the Nobel Prize for research into the regulatory role of nitric oxide in the cardiovascular system was awarded to three scientists from the USA - F. Murad, R. Furchgott and L. Ignarro. However, no less contribution to the study of the biological role of nitric oxide was made by A.F. Vanin (Russia) and S. Moncada, director of the Institute of Biomedical Research at the University of London, who did not receive the prize.
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