Alfred Nobel

In 1888, Alfred Nobel read his own obituary in a French newspaper entitled “The Merchant of Death is Dead,” published by mistake by reporters. The article made Nobel think about how humanity would remember him. After this, he decided to change his will. On December 10, 1896, Alfred Nobel died at his villa in San Remo, Italy, of a cerebral hemorrhage.

Alfred Nobel's will, drawn up on November 27, 1895, was announced in January 1897:

Nobel's will

“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. Income from investments should belong to the fund, which will distribute them annually in the form of bonuses to those who, within previous year brought the greatest benefit to humanity... The indicated percentages must be divided by five equal parts, which are intended: one part - to the one who will make 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; fourth - to the one who creates the most outstanding literary work idealistic direction; fifth - to the one who has made the most significant contribution to the unity of nations, the abolition of slavery or the reduction of the size of existing armies and the promotion of peace congresses ... It is my special desire that, in awarding prizes, no consideration will be given to the nationality of the candidates ... "

This will was initially received with skepticism. It was only on April 26, 1897 that it was approved by the Storting of Norway. The executors of Nobel's will, secretary Ragnar Sulman and lawyer Rudolf Liljequist, organized the Nobel Foundation to take care of the execution of his will and organize the presentation of prizes.

According to Nobel's instructions, the Norwegian Nobel Committee, whose members were appointed in April 1897 shortly after the will came into force, became responsible for awarding the Peace Prize. After some time, the organizations presenting the remaining awards were determined. On June 7, he became responsible for the presentation of the Prize in Physiology and Medicine; On June 9, the Swedish Academy received the right to award a prize for literature; On 11 June, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences was recognized as responsible for the physics and chemistry prizes. On June 29, 1900, the Nobel Foundation was founded for the purpose of managing the finances and organizing the Nobel Prizes. The Nobel Foundation reached agreement on the basic principles of awarding prizes, and in 1900 the newly created foundation charter was accepted by King Oscar II. In 1905, the Swedish-Norwegian Union was dissolved. From now on, the Norwegian Nobel Committee is responsible for awarding the Nobel Peace Prize, and Swedish organizations are responsible for the remaining prizes.

Prize rules

The main document regulating the rules for awarding the prize is the statute of the Nobel Foundation.

The prize can only be awarded to individuals and not institutions (except for peace prizes). The Peace Prize can be awarded to individuals as well as officials and public organizations.

According to § 4 of the statute, one or two jobs can be encouraged at the same time, but at the same time total number the number of recipients should not exceed three. Although this rule was only introduced in 1968, it has always been de facto respected. In this case, the monetary reward is divided among the laureates as follows: the prize is first divided equally between the works, and then equally between their authors. Thus, if two different discoveries are awarded, one of which was made by two people, then they each receive 1/4 of the monetary part of the prize. And if one discovery is awarded, which was made by two or three, everyone receives equally (1/2 or 1/3 of the prize, respectively)

Also in § 4 it is stated that the prize cannot be awarded posthumously. However, if the applicant was alive at the time the prize was announced (usually in October), but died before the award ceremony (December 10 of the current year), then the prize remains with him. This rule was adopted in 1974 and before that the prize was awarded posthumously twice: to Erik Karlfeldt in 1931 and to Dag Hammarskjöld in 1961. However, in 2011, the rule was broken when, by decision of the Nobel Committee, Ralph Steinman was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine posthumously, since at the time of the award the Nobel Committee considered him alive.

According to § 5 of the statute, the prize may not be awarded to anyone if the members of the relevant committee did not find worthy works among those nominated for competition. In this case, the prize money is retained until the next year. If in next year The prize was not awarded, the funds are transferred to the closed reserve of the Nobel Foundation.

Nobel Prizes

Nobel's will provided for the allocation of funds for awards to representatives of only five areas:

• Physics (awarded since , in Sweden);
• Chemistry (awarded from , in Sweden);
• Physiology and Medicine (awarded since , in Sweden);
• Literature (awarded since, in Sweden);
• Promoting world peace (awarded since , in Norway).

In addition, regardless of Nobel’s will, since 1969, on the initiative of the Swedish Bank, a prize in his name in economics has also been awarded. It is awarded under the same conditions as other Nobel Prizes. In the future, the board of the Nobel Foundation decided not to increase the number of nominations.

The laureate is required to give a so-called “Nobel Memorial Lecture,” which is then published by the Nobel Foundation in a special volume.

Quantity Nobel laureates from various countries

Nobel Prize amount

Award procedure

Award presentation

The award procedure is preceded by a lot of work that is being carried out all year round numerous organizations around the world. In October, the laureates are finally approved and announced. The final selection of laureates is carried out by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, the Swedish Academy, the Nobel Assembly of the Karolinska Institutet and the Norwegian Nobel Committee. The award procedure takes place annually, on December 10, in the capitals of two countries - Sweden and Norway. In Stockholm, prizes in the fields of physics, chemistry, physiology and medicine, literature and economics are awarded by the King of Sweden, and in the field of peace - by the Chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee - in Oslo, in the city hall, in the presence of the King of Norway and members of the royal family. Along with a cash prize, the amount of which varies depending on the income received from the Nobel Foundation, laureates are awarded a medal with his image and a diploma.

The first Nobel banquet took place on December 10, 1901, simultaneously with the first presentation of the prize. Currently, the banquet is held in the Blue Hall of the City Hall. 1300-1400 people are invited to the banquet. Dress code - tailcoats and evening dresses. The menu development involves the participation of chefs from the Town Hall Cellar (a restaurant at the Town Hall) and culinary specialists who have ever received the title of Chef of the Year. In September, three menu options are tasted by members of the Nobel Committee, who decide what will be served “at Nobel’s table.” The only dessert that is always known is ice cream, but until the evening of December 10, no one except a narrow circle of initiates knows what kind.

For the Nobel banquet, specially designed dinnerware and tablecloths are used. A portrait of Nobel is woven on the corner of each tablecloth and napkin. Dishes self made: along the edge of the plate there is a stripe of the three colors of the Swedish Empire - blue, green and gold. The stem of the crystal wine glass is decorated in the same color scheme. The banquet service was commissioned for $1.6 million for the 90th anniversary of the Nobel Prizes in 1991. It consists of 6,750 glasses, 9,450 knives and forks, 9,550 plates and one tea cup. The last one is for Princess Liliana, who doesn't drink coffee. The cup is stored in a special beautiful wooden box with the princess's monogram. The saucer from the cup was stolen.

The tables in the hall are arranged with mathematical precision, and the hall is decorated with 23,000 flowers sent from San Remo. All movements of the waiters are strictly timed down to the second. For example, the ceremonial bringing in of ice cream takes exactly three minutes from the moment the first waiter appears with a tray at the door until the last of them stands at his table. Other dishes take two minutes to serve.

The banquet ends with the delivery of ice cream, crowned with a chocolate monogram “N” like a crown. At 22:15 the Swedish king gives the signal for the start of dancing in the Golden Hall of the Town Hall. At 1:30 the guests leave.

Absolutely all dishes from the menu, from 1901 onwards, can be ordered at the Stockholm Town Hall restaurant. This lunch costs a little less than $200. Every year they are ordered by 20 thousand visitors, and traditionally the most popular menu is the last Nobel banquet.

Nobel Concert

Nobel Concert- one of the three components of the Nobel week, along with the presentation of prizes and the Nobel dinner. It is considered one of the main musical events of the year in Europe and the main musical event of the year in the Scandinavian countries. The most prominent classical musicians of our time take part in it. In fact, there are two Nobel concerts: one is held on December 8 of each year in Stockholm, the second in Oslo at the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony.

Nobel Prize Equivalents

Many areas of science remained “uncovered” by the Nobel Prize. Due to the fame and prestige of the Nobel Prizes, the most prestigious awards in other fields are often informally referred to as "Nobel Prizes".

Mathematics and computer science

Initially, Nobel included mathematics in the list of sciences for which the prize is awarded, but later crossed it out, replacing it with the Peace Prize. The exact reason is unknown. There are many legends associated with this fact, poorly supported by facts. Most often this is associated with the name of the Swedish mathematician, the leader of Swedish mathematics at that time Mittag-Leffler, whom Nobel disliked for some reason. Among these reasons, they name either the mathematician’s courtship of Nobel’s fiancée, or the fact that he was persistently begging for donations to Stockholm University. Being one of the most prominent mathematicians in Sweden at that time, Mittag-Leffler was also the main contender for this very prize.

Another version: Nobel had a lover, Anna Desry, who later fell in love with Franz Lemarge and married him. Franz was the son of a diplomat and at that time was planning to become a mathematician.

According to the director of the executive committee of the Nobel Foundation: “there is not a word about this in the archives. Rather, mathematics was simply not within Nobel's area of ​​interest. He bequeathed money for bonuses in areas close to him.” Thus, stories about stolen brides and annoying mathematicians should be interpreted as legends or anecdotes.

The "equivalents" of the Nobel Prize in mathematics are the Fields Medal and the Abel Prize, in the field of computer science - the Turing Award.

Economy

This is the unofficial name for the Bank of Sweden Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel. The prize was established by the Bank of Sweden in 1969. Unlike other prizes awarded at the award ceremony for Nobel laureates, funds for this prize are not allocated from the legacy of Alfred Nobel. Therefore, the question of whether this prize should be considered a “true Nobel” is debatable. The winner of the Nobel Prize in Economics is announced on October 12; The awards ceremony takes place in Stockholm on December 10th of each year.

Art

Each year, His Imperial Highness Prince Hitachi, honorary patron of the Japan Arts Association, presents five "Imperial Prizes (Praemium Imperiale)" awards, which he says fill a gap in the Nobel Committee's nominations - specially designed medals, diplomas and cash prizes in five fields of art : painting, sculpture, architecture, music, theater/cinema. The reward is 15 million yen, which is equal to 195 thousand dollars.

Criticism of the award

Factual inconsistency with the will

According to Nobel's will, the prize should be awarded for discoveries, inventions and achievements made in the year of the award. This provision is de facto not respected.

Natural science awards

A number of scientists die before their discoveries or inventions pass the “test of time” necessary to be awarded the prize. There has also been a tendency to award prizes to representatives of the same scientific schools.

Humanitarian Awards

The compliance of the laureates of the literature prize with the official criteria for its award raised questions at the beginning of the 20th century [ specify] .

Repeated awards

Prizes (other than the Peace Prize) can only be awarded once, but there have been a few exceptions to this rule in the history of the award. Only four people were awarded Nobel Prize twice:

• Marie Skłodowska-Curie, in physics in 1903 and in chemistry in 1911.
• Linus Pauling, Chemistry in 1954 and Peace Prize in 1962.
• John Bardeen, two prizes in physics, in 1956 and 1972.
• Frederick Sanger, two prizes in chemistry, in 1958 and 1980.

Organizations

• The International Committee of the Red Cross has been awarded the Peace Prize three times, in 1917, 1944 and 1963.
• The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has twice received the Peace Prize, in 1954 and 1981.

Nobel Prize in Art

Ig Nobel Prize

Ig Nobel Prizes, Ignobel Prize, Anti-Nobel Prize(English) Ig Nobel Prize) - a parody of the Nobel Prize. Ten Ig Nobel Prizes are awarded at the beginning of October, that is, at the time when the winners of the real Nobel Prize are named, for achievements that first make you laugh and then make you think ( first make people laugh, and then make them think). The prize was founded by Mark Abrahams and the humor magazine Annals of Incredible Research.

See also

	Nobel Prize on Wikimedia Commons
	Nobel Prize in Wikinews

Notes

1. Levinovitz, Agneta Wallin. - 2001. - P. 5.
2. Levinovitz, Agneta Wallin. - 2001. - P. 11.
3. Golden, Frederic. The Worst And The Brightest, " Time magazine, Time Warner(16 October 2000). Retrieved April 9, 2010.
4. Sohlman, Ragnar. - 1983. - P. 13.
5. Compuart magazine. Calendar of significant dates. Nikolay Dubina
6. From dynamite to Viagra. Kommersant. Archived from the original on August 9, 2012. Retrieved June 28, 2012.
7. Levinovitz, Agneta Wallin. - 2001. - P. 13–25.
8. Abrams, Irwin. - 2001. - P. 7–8.
9. Crawford, Elizabeth T.. - 1984. - P. 1.
10. Levinovitz, Agneta Wallin. - 2001. - P. 14.
11. AFP Alfred Nobel's last will and testament. The Local(5 October 2009). Archived from the original on August 9, 2012. Retrieved June 11, 2010.
12. Statutes of the Nobel Foundation. Nobel Foundation. Archived
13. What the Nobel Laureates Receive. Nobel Foundation. Archived from the original on October 26, 2012. Retrieved October 2, 2012.
14. Nomination FAQ. Nobel Foundation. Archived from the original on October 26, 2012. Retrieved October 2, 2012.
15. A Canadian scientist will win the Nobel Prize posthumously. Lenta.ru(October 3, 2011). Retrieved April 5, 2012.
16. Monetary equivalent of the Nobel Prize. Reference
17. Dynamics of the cross rate of the Swedish krona to the US dollar. Reference
18. [ITAR-TASS June 12, 2012. The size of the Nobel Prize has decreased...

Illustration copyright SPL Image caption The inventor of dynamite, Nobel welcomed the ideas of pacifism all his life

Why did Alfred Nobel bequeath his fortune to encourage scientific discoveries?

On November 27, 1895, the Swedish chemist and engineer, inventor of dynamite Alfred Nobel, signed a will that literally said the following: “I want to dispose of the rest of my fortune as follows: the executors of my will should invest capital in safe securities. They will form a fund, interest on which will be distributed as a bonus to those who, during the previous year, have made scientific discoveries which will bring the greatest benefit to humanity..."

The inventor of dynamite, Nobel welcomed the ideas of pacifism all his life.

In 1888, Alfred's brother Ludwig died in Cannes. One French newspaper mistakenly published an obituary for the inventor himself under the headline: “Le marchand de la mort est mort” - “The Merchant of Death is Dead.” Nobel was deeply shocked. He did not want to remain in the memory of mankind as the inventor of a deadly explosive.

What amount are we talking about?

At the time of Alfred Nobel's death, the award amounted to more than 31 million Swedish kronor. IN present moment The capital of the Nobel Prize Foundation is estimated at approximately US$500 million.

When were the first Nobel Prizes awarded?

The first Nobel Prizes were awarded in 1901. Nobel donated 94% of his fortune to the prize fund. His will was disputed by family members and was later approved by the Swedish government.

How many people have won the Nobel Prize?

The Nobel Prize has been awarded 567 times. However, several times more than one nominee received it. In total, 860 people and 22 organizations became laureates.

Were there any years when the Nobel Prize was not awarded?

Illustration copyright NOBEL FOUNDATION Image caption Today the size of the Nobel Foundation is approximately $500 million.

Were. Since 1901, the Nobel Prize has not been awarded 49 times. Most of the prizes not awarded occurred during the First (1914-1918) and Second (1939-1945) World Wars. In addition, the statutes of the Nobel Prize Foundation state that if "... none of the work is of sufficient importance, the prize money should be postponed until the next year. If for the second year in a row there are no worthy discoveries, then the funds will be made available to fund".

In what areas are Nobel Prizes most often awarded?

Nobel Prizes in Physics have most often been awarded for discoveries in the field of physics elementary particles, in chemistry - for discoveries in biochemistry, in medicine - in genetics, in economics - in macroeconomics, and in literature - for prose.

Scientists from which countries most often became Nobel laureates?

Illustration copyright RIA NOVOSTI Image caption Brodsky received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1987, but it was not credited to the USSR

In first place is the United States of America with 257 laureates. In second place is Great Britain with 93, in third place is Germany with 80. Russia has 27 laureates. According to the rules of the Nobel Committee, this does not include people, for example, who were born in Russia or the USSR, but made discoveries in another country. Or writers who wrote in Russian, but were by that time citizens of other countries, for example, Ivan Bunin in 1933 or Joseph Brodsky in 1987.

At what age do they become Nobel Prize laureates?

In a variety of ways: the youngest laureate was last year Malala Yousafzai. She received the Peace Prize at the age of just 17. The oldest was 90-year-old Leonid Gurvich, who received the Nobel Prize in Economics in 2007.

Are there any women among the laureates?

There are, although they are a minority. In total, women received awards 47 times. And only one of them - Marie Curie - received it twice: once in physics, the other in chemistry. So, in total, 46 women became Nobel laureates.

Was it the case that the Nobel Prize was renounced voluntarily?

Certainly. But only twice: the French writer Jean-Paul Sartre refused the prize for literature in 1964 because he did not recognize official awards at all. And Vietnamese politician Le Duc Tho refused the Peace Prize in 1973, saying that he did not consider it possible to accept it due to the situation in the country.

Is it forced?

There was such a thing. Adolf Hitler forbade three scientists: chemist Richard Kuhn, biochemist Adolf Butenandt and bacteriologist Gerhard Domagk to accept the prize. Later they were able to receive medals and diplomas, but not prize money.

Soviet poet and writer Boris Pasternak first agreed to accept the Nobel Prize, but then, under pressure from the authorities, refused it.

And posthumously?

Yes and no. The status of the Nobel Foundation determines that the prize can only be awarded to a living person. However, if at the time of the announcement of the result he was still alive, and had already died by the time the prize was awarded, then he is still considered a Nobel laureate. In 2011, the Nobel Prize in Medicine was awarded to Ralph Steinman. After the results were announced, it turned out that he had already died three days ago. After a meeting of the board of the Nobel Committee, it was decided to leave him on the list of laureates because the Nobel Commission of the Royal Carolinian Institute was not aware of his death at the time of making the decision.

Were there any family Nobel Prizes?

How! And the greatest contribution to this small list was made by the Joliot-Curie family. The following family laureates emerged from it: two married couples: Marie and Pierre Curie and Irene Joliot-Curie and Frederic Joliot, mother and daughter: Marie Curie and Irene Joliot-Curie, and father and daughter: Pierre Curie and Irene Joliot Curie.

Why is there no Nobel Prize in mathematics?

This is where we enter the realm of speculation. Nobel himself noted in his will that he chose the relevant disciplines “after a balanced and thoughtful analysis.” However, he took his train of thought to the grave.

The version that, by excluding mathematics, he thus took revenge on his wife’s lover, who was precisely a representative of this science, does not stand up to criticism, because Alfred Nobel was never married.

The most likely assumption is that Nobel insisted that discoveries “must benefit humanity,” and pure mathematics remains pure mathematics, an exercise for the mind, from it to the common man neither hot nor cold. Well, what difference does it make to the majority of the world's population whether Fermat's theorem has been proven or not?

Mathematics, as applied to physics, chemistry or economics, is awarded precisely in these disciplines.

What about biology?

Again, medicine. Or chemistry. Interpretations are possible.

nobel prize laureate award

The Nobel Prize is one of the most prestigious international prizes, awarded for outstanding scientific research, revolutionary inventions or major contributions to culture or society. The prize can only be awarded to individuals, not institutions (except for Peace Prizes), and only once (there are a few exceptions to this rule). The Peace Prize can be awarded to individuals as well as official and public organizations. The prize cannot be awarded jointly to more than three persons (this decision was made in 1968). The prize can only be awarded posthumously if the applicant was alive at the time the award was announced (usually in October), but died before December 10 of the current year (decided in 1974).

The Nobel Prizes were established in accordance with the will of Alfred Nobel, drawn up by him on November 27, 1895: “All my movable and immovable property should be converted by my executors into liquid assets, and the capital thus collected should be placed in a reliable bank. The income from investments should belong to the fund, which will distribute them annually in the form of bonuses to those who have brought the greatest benefit to humanity during the previous year... The specified percentages 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; - to the one who makes the most important discovery or improvement in the field of chemistry; third - to the one who makes the most important discovery in the field of physiology or medicine; fourth - to the one who creates the most outstanding literary work of an idealistic direction; has made most substantial contributions 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 in the awarding of prizes the nationality of the candidates shall not be taken into account...”

Thus, Nobel’s will provided for the allocation of funds for awards to representatives of only five areas:

Literature (awarded since 1901, in Sweden);

Physics (awarded since 1901, in Sweden);

Chemistry (awarded since 1901, in Sweden);

Physiology and Medicine (awarded since 1901, in Sweden);

Promoting World Peace (awarded since 1901, in Norway);

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 institute for the this profile, according to 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.

The Nobel Foundation was created in 1900 as a private independent non-governmental organization, with initial capital SEK 31 million (at current prices this amount is equivalent to approximately SEK 1.5 billion). The first premiums were 150,000 crowns. Currently, the fund's capital is 2 billion 966 million Swedish kronor (approximately 450 million US dollars).

Alfred Nobel's will, drawn up on November 27, 1895, was announced in January 1897:

“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 said 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 significant contribution to the unity of nations, the abolition of slavery or the reduction of the strength of existing armies and the promotion of peace congresses ... It is my special desire that, in awarding prizes, the nationality of the candidates shall not be taken into account ... "

This will was initially received with skepticism. Numerous relatives of Nobel considered themselves deprived and demanded that the will be declared illegal. Only on April 26, 1897, it was approved by the Storting of Norway. The executors of Nobel's will, secretary Ragnar Sulman and lawyer Rudolf Liljequist, organized the Nobel Foundation to take care of the execution of his will and organize the presentation of prizes.

According to Nobel's instructions, the Norwegian Nobel Committee, whose members were appointed in April 1897 shortly after the will came into force, became responsible for awarding the Peace Prize. After some time, the organizations awarding the remaining prizes were determined. On June 7, he became responsible for awarding a prize in the field of physiology or medicine; On June 9, the Swedish Academy received the right to award a prize for literature; On 11 June, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences was recognized as responsible for the awards in physics and chemistry. On June 29, 1900, the Nobel Foundation was founded to manage the finances and organize the Nobel Prizes. The Nobel Foundation reached agreement on the basic principles of awarding prizes, and in 1900 the newly created foundation charter was accepted by King Oscar II. In 1905, the Swedish-Norwegian Union was dissolved. From now on, the Norwegian Nobel Committee is responsible for awarding the Nobel Peace Prize, and Swedish organizations are responsible for the remaining prizes.

Prize rules

The main document regulating the rules for awarding the prize is the Nobel Foundation.

The prize can only be awarded to individuals and not institutions (except for peace prizes). The Peace Prize can be awarded to individuals as well as official and public organizations.

According to § 4 of the statute, one or two works can be rewarded at the same time, but the total number of recipients should not exceed three. Although this rule was only introduced in 1968, it has always been de facto respected. In this case, the monetary reward is divided among the laureates as follows: the prize is first divided equally between the works, and then equally between their authors. Thus, if two different discoveries are awarded, one of which was made by two people, then the latter receive 1/4 of the monetary part of the prize. And if one discovery is awarded, which was made by two or three, everyone receives equally (1/2 or 1/3 of the prize, respectively).

Also in § 4 it is stated that the prize cannot be awarded posthumously. However, if the applicant was alive at the time the prize was announced (usually in October), but died before the award ceremony (December 10 of the current year), then the prize remains with him. This rule was adopted in 1974, and before that the prize was awarded posthumously twice: to Erik Karlfeldt in 1931 and to Dag Hammarskjöld in 1961. However, in 2011, the rule was broken when, by decision of the Nobel Committee, Ralph Steinman was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine posthumously, since at the time the Nobel Committee considered him alive.

According to § 5 of the statute, the prize may not be awarded to anyone if the members of the relevant committee did not find worthy works among those nominated for competition. In this case, the prize money is retained until the next year. If the prize was not awarded next year, the funds are transferred to the closed reserve of the Nobel Foundation.

Nobel Prizes

Nobel's will provided for the allocation of funds for awards to representatives of only five areas:

• Physics (awarded since 1901 in Sweden);
• Chemistry
• Physiology and Medicine (awarded since 1901 in Sweden);
• Literature (awarded since 1901 in Sweden);
• Promoting World Peace (awarded since 1901 in Norway).

In addition, without connection with Nobel's will, since 1969, at the initiative of the Bank of Sweden, the Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel has also been awarded, informally called the Nobel Prize in Economics. It is awarded under the same conditions as other Nobel Prizes. In the future, the board of the Nobel Foundation decided not to increase the number of nominations.

The laureate is required to give a so-called “Nobel Memorial Lecture,” which is then published by the Nobel Foundation in a special volume.

Nobel Prize amount

Award procedure

Award Nomination

Requests for nominations are sent by the Nobel Committee to approximately three thousand individuals, usually in September of the year preceding the year the prize is awarded. These individuals are often researchers working in the relevant field. For the Peace Prize, requests are sent to governments, members of international courts, professors, rectors, Peace Prize recipients, or former members of the Nobel Committee. Proposals must be returned by January 31 of the award year. The committee nominates approximately 300 possible recipients. The names of the nominees are not publicly announced, and the nominees are not informed of the fact of their nomination. All information about nominations for the award remains secret for 50 years.

Award presentation

The award procedure is preceded by a lot of work, which is carried out all year round by numerous organizations around the world. In October, the laureates are finally approved and announced. The final selection of laureates is carried out by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, the Swedish Academy, the Nobel Assembly of the Karolinska Institutet and the Norwegian Nobel Committee. The award procedure takes place annually, on December 10, in the capitals of two countries - Sweden and Norway. In Stockholm, prizes in the fields of physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature and economics are presented by the King of Sweden, and in the field of peace by the Chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee - in Oslo, at the city hall, in the presence of the King of Norway and members of the royal family. Along with a cash prize, the amount of which varies depending on the income received from the Nobel Foundation, laureates are awarded a medal with his image and a diploma.

The first Nobel banquet took place on December 10, 1901, simultaneously with the first presentation of the prize. Currently, the banquet is held in the Blue Hall of the City Hall. 1300-1400 people are invited to the banquet. Dress code: tailcoats and evening dresses. The menu development involves the participation of chefs from the Town Hall Cellar (a restaurant at the Town Hall) and culinary specialists who have ever received the title of Chef of the Year. In September, three menu options are tasted by members of the Nobel Committee, who decide what will be served “at Nobel’s table.” The only dessert that is always known is ice cream, but until the evening of December 10, no one except a narrow circle of initiates knows what kind.

For the Nobel banquet, specially designed dinnerware and tablecloths are used. A portrait of Nobel is woven on the corner of each tablecloth and napkin. Handmade tableware: along the edge of the plate there is a stripe of three colors of the Swedish Empire - blue, green and gold. The stem of the crystal wine glass is decorated in the same color scheme. The banquet service was commissioned for $1.6 million for the 90th anniversary of the Nobel Prizes in 1991. It consists of 6,750 glasses, 9,450 knives and forks, 9,550 plates and one tea cup. The last one is for Princess Liliana (1915-2013), who did not drink coffee. The cup is stored in a special beautiful wooden box with the princess's monogram. The saucer from the cup was stolen.

The tables in the hall are arranged with mathematical precision, and the hall is decorated with 23,000 flowers sent from San Remo. All movements of the waiters are strictly timed down to the second. For example, the ceremonial bringing in of ice cream takes exactly three minutes from the moment the first waiter appears with a tray at the door until the last of them stands at his table. Other dishes take two minutes to serve.

The banquet ends with the delivery of ice cream, crowned with a chocolate monogram “N” like a crown. At 22:15 the Swedish king gives the signal for the start of dancing in the Golden Hall of the Town Hall. At 1:30 the guests leave.

Absolutely all dishes from the menu, from 1901 onwards, can be ordered at the Stockholm Town Hall restaurant. This lunch costs a little less than $200. Every year they are ordered by 20 thousand visitors, and traditionally the most popular menu is the last Nobel banquet.

Nobel Concert

The Nobel concert is one of the three components of the Nobel week, along with the presentation of prizes and the Nobel dinner. It is considered one of the main musical events of the year in Europe and the main musical event of the year in the Scandinavian countries. The most prominent classical musicians of our time take part in it. In fact, there are two Nobel concerts: one is held on December 8 of each year in Stockholm, the second in Oslo at the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony.

Nobel Prize Equivalents

Many areas of science remained “uncovered” by the Nobel Prize. Due to the fame and prestige of the Nobel Prizes, the most prestigious awards in other fields are often informally referred to as "Nobel Prizes".

Mathematics and computer science

Initially, Nobel included mathematics in the list of sciences for which the prize is awarded, but later crossed it out, replacing it with the Peace Prize. The exact reason is unknown. There are many legends associated with this fact, poorly supported by facts. Most often this is associated with the name of the leading Swedish mathematician of that time Mittag-Leffler, whom Nobel disliked for some reason. Among these reasons, they name either the mathematician’s courtship of Nobel’s fiancée, or the fact that he was persistently begging for donations to Stockholm University. Being one of the most prominent mathematicians in Sweden at that time, Mittag-Leffler was also the main contender for this very prize.

Another version: Nobel had a lover, Anna Desry, who later fell in love with Franz Lemarge and married him. Franz was the son of a diplomat and at the time was planning to become a mathematician.

According to the director of the executive committee of the Nobel Foundation: “There is not a word about this in the archives. Rather, mathematics was simply not within Nobel's area of ​​interest. He bequeathed money for bonuses in areas close to him.” Thus, stories about stolen brides and annoying mathematicians should be interpreted as legends or anecdotes.

The “equivalents” of the Nobel Prize in mathematics are the Fields Prize and the Abel Prize, in the field of computer science - the Turing Award.

Economy

This is the unofficial name for the Bank of Sweden Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel. The prize was established by the Bank of Sweden in 1969. Unlike other prizes awarded at the award ceremony for Nobel laureates, funds for this prize are not allocated from the legacy of Alfred Nobel. Therefore, the question of whether this prize should be considered a “true Nobel” is debatable. The winner of the Nobel Prize in Economics is announced on October 12; The awards ceremony takes place in Stockholm on December 10th of each year.

Geography

Art

Every year, His Imperial Highness Prince Hitachi, honorary patron of the Japan Arts Association, presents five “Imperial Prizes (Praemium Imperiale)” awards, which he says fill the gap in the Nobel Committee's nominations - specially designed medals, diplomas and cash prizes in five fields of art : painting, sculpture, architecture, music, theater/cinema. The reward is 15 million yen, which is equal to 195 thousand dollars.

Criticism

One point of view is that Ivan Bunin, Boris Pasternak, Alexander Solzhenitsyn, Mikhail Gorbachev, etc., received the prize only for criticizing the USSR, etc. An example of such criticism is the opinion of journalist Sergei Lunev:

I would not consider the Nobel Prize in Literature as anything other than part of a propaganda campaign against Soviet Russia. This does not mean that Russian Soviet writers received this prize undeservedly, it is just that their work was in second place among those who awarded them this prize.

Grigory Revzin satirically played on the fact that there are few Nobel Prize winners in literature from Russia, and all of them can be associated with one or another political background. The historian of science A. M. Bloch writes about this criticism as follows:

The Nobel committees were accused of bias, of cultivating anti-Sovietism when choosing laureates of the most prestigious award of the century, etc. During the noisy propaganda campaigns associated with the awarding of the Nobel Prize to B. L. Pasternak, A. I. Solzhenitsyn, A. D. Sakharov, accusations of anti-Soviet provocations, of course, were developed primarily in the ideological departments of Old Square or under their direct patronage. However, these far-fetched claims found fertile ground in society, including in intellectual circles. Hostility towards the Nobel institutions eventually turned into one of the manifestations of anti-Western sentiments, persistently preached by party ideologists and at the same time providing stable feedback.

A striking example feedback became the Nobel Peace Prize, awarded in 1990 to USSR President M. S. Gorbachev. The award caused a predominantly negative reaction among the population, although ideological structures did not take a visible part in organizing protest sentiments; after all, Gorbachev, being the president of the country, simultaneously retained his post Secretary General Central Committee of the CPSU. IN in this case Soviet society itself reaped the benefits of suspicion and hostility instilled by total propaganda towards any positive step on the part of Western countries...

Repeated awards

Prizes (other than the Peace Prize) can only be awarded once, but there have been a few exceptions to this rule in the history of the award. Only four people have won the Nobel Prize twice:

• Marie Skłodowska-Curie, in physics in 1903 and in chemistry in 1911.
• Linus Pauling, Chemistry in 1954 and Peace Prize in 1962.
• John Bardeen, two prizes in physics, in 1956 and 1972.
• Frederick Sanger, two prizes in chemistry, in 1958 and 1980.

Organizations

• The International Committee of the Red Cross has been awarded the Peace Prize three times, in 1917, 1944 and 1963.
• The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has twice received the Peace Prize, in 1954 and 1981.

Nobel Prize in Art

Ig Nobel Prize

Ig Nobel Prizes, Ignobel Prize, Anti-Nobel Prize(eng. Ig Nobel Prize) - a parody of the Nobel Prize. Ten Ig Nobel Prizes are awarded at the beginning of October, that is, at the time when the winners of the real Nobel Prize are named, for achievements that first make you laugh and then make you think ( first make people laugh, and then make them think). The prize was founded by Mark Abrahams and the humor magazine Annals of Incredible Research.

See also

	Nobel Prize on Wikimedia Commons
	Nobel Prize in Wikinews

• List of Nobel Prize laureates by university

Notes

1. Levinovitz, Agneta Wallin. ((publication)) . - 2001. - P. 5.
2. Levinovitz, Agneta Wallin. Error: parameter |title= is not specified in the template ((publication)) . - 2001. - P. 11.
3. // New encyclopedic dictionary: In 48 volumes (29 volumes published). - St. Petersburg. , Pg. , 1911-1916.
4. Golden, Frederic. The Worst And The Brightest , Time magazine, Time Warner (16 October 2000). Retrieved April 9, 2010.
5. Sohlman, Ragnar. Error: parameter |title= is not specified in the template ((publication)) . - 1983. - P. 13.

Promotion 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 landowner baronet 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 “developing 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 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 Crimean War; 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 said 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. I must say that every year it becomes more and more difficult to explain ordinary people, why does this or that discovery awarded a prize have great value 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 certain tasks, 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. Most effective use The “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 senile 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 works of these economists are widely practical application; on their basis, for example, modern European bankruptcy legislation was formed.

Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos Calderon received the Nobel Peace Prize, ending a campaign that lasted more than half a century. civil war in your own country. 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 the behavior of animals, 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.