History of the Nobel Prize. Nobel Prize: history of establishment and nomination Where the Nobel Prize is awarded

December 10, the day of death Alfreda Nobel, The Nobel Prize will be awarded at the Stockholm Philharmonic. Each laureate will receive King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden a gold medal with a portrait of the founder of the award and a diploma. The size of the monetary component of the award this year, as in the previous three years, reaches 8 million crowns (about 59 million rubles).

Who is up for the award this year?

Until the last moment, Nobel committees say nothing about the candidates for the prize or those who nominated them, and experts are trying to make assumptions about the names kept secret.

Every year, Thomson Reuters tries to predict who will win awards based on researchers' citation rankings.

— Physics

In the field of physics, the award may be given for the experimental detection of gravitational waves. Three physicists are named among the main contenders for the prize: Rainer Weiss, professor of physics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Ronald Drever, a Scottish physicist and laser specialist, and Kippah Torna, physicist and astronomer, a world-recognized expert in the field of general relativity.

Thomson Reuters' citation count names two more teams of scientists vying for the Nobel Prize in Physics. So, professor was named as a possible candidate Marvin Cohen for the study of the properties of solids, mathematical methods for calculating their properties, and especially for the empirical method of pseudopotentials. Also among the possible candidates are Celso Grebogi, Edward Ott And James York for his contribution to the theory of control of chaotic systems. The OGY method they developed has found wide application in studying the behavior of chaotic systems in mechanics, laser physics, radiophysics, chemistry, biology and medicine.

Can apply for a prize in chemistry George Church And Feng Zhan, who managed to edit the genomes of mice and humans using the system responsible for the development of acquired immunity in bacteria. The system turned out to be possible to use for editing genes in animals and humans, in particular, for removing HIV from infected T-lymphocytes.

In addition to them, he can count on a reward Dennis Law who developed a method for detecting cell-free fetal DNA in maternal blood plasma, which will help diagnose certain genetic diseases, and X Iroshi Maeda with Yasuhiro Matsumura, who discovered the effect of increased permeability and retention for macromolecular drugs.

- Economy

Among the likely candidates for the award is: Edward Lazear for his work in the field of personnel economics, which concerns the development of new models of employee motivation, career growth and productivity, as well as Olivier Blanchard for contributions to macroeconomics and the study of the determinants of economic instability and employment.

The third candidate was named Mark Melitz for his studies of heterogeneity (heterogeneity) of firms in international trade.

— Peace Prize

May be eligible for the Peace Prize former US intelligence agent Edward Snowden and Pope Francis.

How many people have received the Nobel Prize during its existence?

Since 1901, 881 people and 23 organizations have received the award. It was not awarded during the First and Second World Wars. The United States leads in the number of laureates (359 people), Great Britain is in second place (121 people), and Germany is in third place (104 people). Russia has 27 laureates.

Voluntarily refused the French award writer Jean-Paul Sartre and Vietnamese politician Le Duc Tho. Three were forced not to receive it. Adolf Gitler banned chemist Richard Kuhn, biochemist Adolf Butenandt and bacteriologist Gerhard Domagk accept the prize, and the Soviet writer Boris Pasternak At first he agreed to accept the award, but then, under pressure from the authorities, he refused.

Seeing something new is a great achievement. And having seen, no

pass by, it is truly believe

in the novelty of what has opened - no less merit

On the contrary, it is much larger.

When starting to study the emergence and development of the Nobel Prize, first of all, we must pay attention to the one who laid the foundation for this prize, namely A. Nobel. Alfred Nobel was a rather successful manufacturer; he first earned significant capital from the arms trade. He was a very interesting figure, a man of firm rules. He left his earned money not to his family, but, according to his will, to pay bonuses that should be awarded to scientists who made the greatest contribution to the history of science with their discoveries.

The Nobels are Swedish inventors and industrialists who lived in Russia for a long time. Father - Emmanuel (1801-72) - inventor of underwater mines, founded a mechanical plant in St. Petersburg.

Alfred Bernhard (1833-96) - founder of the Nobel Prizes, invented dynamite (1867), ballistite (1888), organizer and co-owner of many enterprises for the production of explosives. Ludwig (1831-1888) - designer of machine tools, turned the plant founded by his father into a large machine-building plant (now Russian Diesel in St. Petersburg), together with his brothers he organized an oil industrial enterprise in Baku (since 1879, the Nobel Brothers Partnership). Emmanuel, son of Ludwig, (1859-1932) headed the enterprises of the Nobel family in Russia until 1917.

On November 27, 1895, Swedish inventor and industrialist Alfred Bernhard Nobel (1833-1896) signed his will in Paris. Less than four pages in the will were devoted to the donation that glorified the name of A. Nobel. His idea was to “...transfer capital into securities by creating a fund, the income of which would be paid in the form of a bonus to those who during the previous year had made the greatest contribution to the progress of mankind.” Income was to be divided into five parts to reward important discoveries, inventions or improvements in the field of physics, chemistry, physiology (medicine), as well as for “the most significant literary work of an idealistic orientation” and “a significant contribution to the unity of peoples, the elimination or reduction of standing armies or in the development of peace initiatives"

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, or almost $40*million), and all this money went to create the fund! The numerous heirs were left with approximately two million - for all of them. As soon as the text of the will was read out, a scandal broke out. Note, not family (Nobel had neither a family nor children) - family. All the Nobels, distant and not so distant, were outraged by the extravagance of their relative. For a long time, the most advanced of them tried to protest the last will of the deceased, starting more and more new processes in the courts of Stockholm, London, Paris and Berlin. What about relatives! Newspapers accused Nobel of lack of patriotism: how could he neglect the interests of the country and his own family for the sake of dubious ideas of pacifism! Even the Swedish king Oscar II was clearly annoyed that a gigantic fortune was so stupidly lost, and the famous arms factories did not go to the Swedish government. And he found an explanation for this: Nobel was influenced by “fanatics of the world.” Scientists unexpectedly joined the chorus of indignant voices: a famous Viennese mathematician made an angry speech, asking why his science was not included in the Nobel list. The exclusion of mathematics did seem strange. Everything about this case seemed strange, and there were plenty of outraged people. And the will was written without proper legal registration - it cost nothing to challenge it. The case was saved by Alfred's eldest nephew, Emmanuel Nobel. He, despite the fact that he had lost his inheritance, insisted on fulfilling the will, because he admired his uncle’s noble plan. About a year later, all Alfred's deposits were withdrawn from industrial circulation. This is where the attorneys began to work hard: it was difficult to deal with Nobel’s inheritance. All his 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...

If the average person is tormented by the amount in his neighbor’s wallet, then when it comes to a large inheritance, then please explain its origin to the whole world. Pragmatic biographers answer simply: patents for the inventions of the great scientist brought millions. He was the holder of more than 350 patents and the owner (or co-owner) of 93 factories. He was one of the richest people in Europe: his fortune was estimated at 700 million Swedish kronor.

Romantics find this explanation insipid. They have a whole story prepared for this, which, naturally, is based on unhappy love. Everything is as always: the young man Nobel is in love with the charming Danish woman Anna Desri (this happens in St. Petersburg). He dreams of a happy family life. She chose to marry the dapper diplomat Franz Lemarge, who once prejudicially insulted the shy Nobel. He offered to solve a problem in mathematics, but Nobel could not. Having thoroughly enjoyed Alfred's confusion, Lemarge announced to those around him: “There is nothing surprising in this, and Monsieur Nobel has nothing to be ashamed of. I’m going to go to university to major in mathematics, but I think Alfred will become a wonderful writer.”

This is how a legend appeared, explaining why Nobel bypassed mathematics in his will. As you know, people love legends more, which is why they remember them longer. But other arguments, more realistic ones, tend to be forgotten. There is an assumption why Nobel “bypassed” exact science: in his time there was already a prize for achievements in the field of mathematics, established by the Swedish king Oscar P. The remedy that heals is love.

However, it is worth paying tribute to the truth of the romantics, who claimed that there was an unhappy love, which inspired the young man to scientific exploits: “From this day on, I no longer need the pleasures of the crowd and begin to study the great book of nature in order to understand what is written in it, and extract from it a remedy that could cure my pain.” A way to cure love has been found, all that remains is to set a goal. “Become an inventor. The most famous. Beat everyone else in the natural sciences. So that the whole world knows about me. And then she will repent, but it will be too late.” The battle has begun. The father hired the best teachers in physics and chemistry for his son, and he studied so hard that the teachers were amazed. Alfred went on internships with famous European professors and soon became an excellent chemist. The elder Nobel shared his most intimate things with him: “A substitute for gunpowder is an idea that can bring in millions. Gunpowder is expensive, inconvenient, and gets wet easily. Whoever comes up with something to replace it will glorify himself for centuries. There are already interesting developments - have you heard about nitroglycerin?

Of course Alfred heard. The usual story: someone accidentally heated a mixture of sulfuric and nitric acids, and the test tube exploded. Then another eccentric - Ascanio Sobrero from Italy - added a little glycerin to the same mixture, called the substance nitroglycerin and recommended prescribing it to heart patients - “a patented remedy, two drops per glass of water to relieve attacks.” In 1854, the famous Russian chemist N.N. Zinin suggested replacing gunpowder with nitroglycerin. He demonstrated the monstrous power of this substance to his student Alfred Nobel. All that remains is to experiment with the proportions - and the problem is solved. And when Nobel completed his experiments, no one remembered about Sobrero.

After solving many legal and financial problems and overcoming dramatic conflicts, the will was recognized as legal. On June 26, 1900, King Oscar II of Sweden and Norway approved the Foundation's Charter and special rules governing the actions of award committees.

When clarifying the charter, a broad interpretation of the will was adopted: it was decided to consider work performed not only in one - the previous - year, but also over the next several years, as well as “forgotten” work, the importance of which was assessed relatively recently. The rule to award prizes only to active scientists, writers and public figures turned out to be significant. The testator believed that the prize would help intensify the creativity of the recipients.

As a result, the A. Nobel Foundation was formed, and the Nobel committees for all prize nominations in 1901 (100 years ago) began work in order to make a decision on awarding prizes by mid-November, and on December 10, 1901, the day of A.’s death .Nobel, in a solemn atmosphere, in Stockholm, to present the laureates with diplomas, gold medals and prizes in the form of a cash check.

Award procedure.

Let us dwell in more detail on points that consider the procedure for awarding prizes, the award ceremony and other organizational details.

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, consisting of each of five people, while the committees on physics, chemistry, economics are chosen by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, on physiology and medicine - by the Royal Karolinska Medical-Surgical Institute in Stockholm, for peace prizes - the Norwegian parliament (Storting), and for literature - the Swedish Academy in Stockholm.

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 rules do not allow anyone to communicate anything about the details of the discussion of candidates. The Nobel industry committees ask all persons entitled to nominate candidates to keep their names confidential. But you can’t hide an sew in a bag. Despite the prohibitions, some of the applicants, introduced into the “anteroom of the pantheon of eternal glory,” immediately print on their business cards: “CANDIDATE FOR THE NOBEL PRIZE.” And the members of the committees themselves, no - no, yes, they let it slip. Thanks to this, journalists often penetrate into the “Nobel kitchen”

Concern for selecting candidates and preparing the award procedure is entrusted to Nobel sectoral committees, elected for a period of three years, but decisions on awarding prizes are made by these committees in full. In the fall, committees send letters to individuals authorized to name candidates. The applicants listed in the responses are then subject to pre-selection. In the spring of next year, members of the commission are named 5-6 candidates and given work for the summer: to get acquainted with the works of the nominees and their biographies. Decisions on new laureates are announced in October.

The main “chef” of this “premium cuisine” (the average age of his charges has exceeded 69 years) is the chairman of the Nobel Foundation, Michael Sulman. His first task is to properly manage Nobel's capital. And it is considerable - about 1 billion Swedish crowns. Premiums are paid from interest, mainly from securities and real estate. This year in each of the 6 areas of activity it will be equal to 7.6 million Swedish crowns, i.e. US$1.3 million.

The award includes a gold medal, a diploma and a cash award. The laureates present Nobel lectures, published in a special publication “Nobel Laureates”. Since 1946, the Nobel Foundation has been exempt from taxes by decision of the Riksdag.

Nobel left no instructions on how to select scientists for the prize. The rules were developed after his death (in 1896) and have remained virtually unchanged since then. Candidates are nominated mainly by Nobel committees, which consist of 3-5 scientists, most often Swedish. Committee members are selected for 9-year terms by the awarding organizations. In their work, committees are guided by numerous unwritten rules. Committee decisions are usually not contested, but there are exceptions. Thus, in 1906, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences refused to accept the decision of the Nobel Committee to award the prize to D.I. Mendeleev for the periodic table of elements, and the prize was awarded to F. Moissan for the discovery of fluorine. This decision was made under pressure from S. Arrhenius, who received the Nobel Prize in 1903 for the theory of electrolytic dissociation, an ardent opponent of which was D.I. Mendeleev. Dmitry Ivanovich died in 1907 without receiving the Nobel Prize.

The award ceremony takes place as follows.

nobel prize award

The Nobel Prizes are awarded every year on October 21, the birthday of A. Nobel, at the same time the names of the laureates are announced, but the presentation of the prize in a solemn ceremony takes place on December 10, the day of his death.

There is an elaborate ritual for the Nobel Prize ceremony. It is not awarded in absentia. Each laureate of the prize in physics, chemistry, medicine and physiology, as well as literature and economics receives it in Stockholm, and the peace prize in Oslo. According to its status, the award is presented in Stockholm by the King of Sweden. Today, this mission is carried out by Carl XVI Gustav. Ten chairs in red upholstery are waiting on the proscenium - for the laureates and three gilded, in blue velvet - for the king, queen and princess

Over 100 years, Nobel Prizes have been awarded to more than 600 people from 39 countries. Only 39 of them are women. 60% of the number of laureates come from the USA, Great Britain and Germany. Among the laureates are 18 of our compatriots.

It is noteworthy that among the American Nobel laureates there are a lot of immigrants from Russia who have adopted American citizenship. Russian and Soviet scientists have received Nobel Prizes 17 times. The last laureate from the USSR was Mikhail Gorbachev.

In conclusion, I would like to note that from the very beginning to the present day, this prize has been coveted by scientists, and they passionately dream of getting it; this award determines the weight of this scientist in the scientific world. The status of the Nobel Prize is determined not so much by the significant amount of money as by its prestige. Nobel Prize laureates receive significant support from the state and private organizations, and their opinions are listened to.

The Nobel Committee announced this year's laureates in chemistry, physics, economics, medicine and biology, and also awarded the Peace Prize. At the same time, the essence of scientific discoveries awarded Nobel is often unclear to people far from the world of science. The Village asked a physicist, biologist, chemist, economist and specialist on Latin American countries to explain in simple words why they gave Nobel this year and how these discoveries can be useful for you and me.

French scientists win Nobel Prize in Chemistry Jean-Pierre Sauvage, Frazer Stoddart and Bernard Feringa for the design and synthesis of molecular machines.

When we talk about molecular machines, we are talking about so-called catenane molecules linked to each other in the form of a chain. It turned out that if you create many such cyclic pairs, that is, a long chain, then the rotation of these rings relative to each other leads to the movement of the molecule forward. This is how a molecular machine is created.

This year, the Nobel Prize was awarded to three laureates, working independently of each other. One first synthesized a simple combination of two rings and showed that they could move forward by moving relative to each other. The second one took one molecule in the form of a rod and put several more rings on this rod. And it turned out that under the right conditions, the rings spinning around this rod can rise up. And the third researcher created a combination, and his molecular machine can move in different directions like a helicopter that rises up due to the rotation of the propeller. A molecular machine will work on the same principle.

Imagine a microwave. We place a cup of water on a stand, and it begins to spin from the energy provided by the electrical device. It turned out that molecular machines will also be able to set objects in motion, and those objects that exceed the weight of these machines by thousands and even millions of times.

Molecular machines will not be put into practice today or next year. But these discoveries will give impetus to new research to create more powerful mechanisms. It's like the discovery of a laser beam that can charge a mobile phone at a distance of two to three kilometers. It would seem that this is not such a discovery. And then it turned out that it was possible to charge spaceships with the same laser beam with a different power. Several years have passed from one experiment to another, and it will certainly be the same with molecular machines.

Molecular machines can be used in any device that will move heavier objects. One of the scientists demonstrated the movement of a liter flask on a device that moved thanks to catenanes. We are talking about the prospect of using these machines in a variety of fields - in biology, medicine, and the food industry. For example, with the help of molecular machines we will be able to deliver drugs into the body. Such a small molecule, consisting of only two rings, will be able to deliver the drug precisely to the target.

Valery Petrosyan

Professor of the Department of Organic Chemistry, Head of the Laboratory of Physical Organic Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, Moscow State University. M. V. Lomonosova

Professor at Tokyo University of Technology receives Nobel Prize in Medicine and Physiology Yoshinori Ohsumi for discoveries in the field of cell autophagy

Nikolay Kontarov

Candidate of Biological Sciences, Senior Researcher at Sechenov Medical University

Autophagy is the degradation of proteins which results in cell death. It is associated with a process such as apoptosis, that is, programmed cell death. If death occurs as a result of some external causes, it is called necrosis. For example, inflammation occurs and because of it the cell dies. But there are times when a cell decides to leave on its own - this is something like suicide, and one of the ways of such cellular suicide is autophagy.

There comes a time when the cell simply cannot support itself and begins to wear out. At this point, it must leave via the autophagy mechanism. But sometimes apoptosis occurs for unknown reasons, and this leads to neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases. If a person’s autophagy mechanism is impaired, the cells degrade quite slowly and eventually become redundant. And harmful changes can occur in such cells. For example, a cell cannot provide itself with enzymes that ensure DNA repair, and this can provoke mutations and breaks, and subsequently a tumor.

There are two modes of autophagy. The first is due to the presence of protosomes, that is, protein complexes that are involved in the degradation of other cellular proteins. Thus, when all proteins are degraded, the cell dies.
For the study of this mechanism, the Nobel Prize was given in 2004.

In parallel, research was carried out on the problem of protein degradation in membrane-coated structures, that is, in lysosomes. Protein degradation occurs in them, which also leads to cell death. That is, the end goal is the same, but the process is different. In one case, proteins in protosomes take part in the process, and in the other, proteins are degraded inside the membrane structure of the lysosome. Actually, the current Nobel is dedicated to the latter.

The practical application of this discovery concerns primarily medicine, in particular the study of Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases. It is believed that in these diseases, similar structures are formed in nerve cells, but why the nerve cells decide to die on their own is still unclear.

The scientific community hopes that a new mechanism of autophagy will shed light on this. On the other hand, the discovery can be applied in embryology. This is important in light of the growing popularity of in vitro fertilization. Knowing the mechanism of autophagy means that we will be able to control the process of embryo formation.

Briton wins Nobel Prize in Economics Oliver Hart and Finn Bengt Holmström for his contribution to the development of contract theory

The concept of "contract theory" looks unusual for those who are not professionally involved in this problem. Essentially, we are talking about how the parties to a contract approach determining its essential terms without having all the necessary information. It is interesting that the laureates were able to present in the form of a mathematical model that part of the contract that is known to the participants by default, but for various reasons cannot be put on paper and, accordingly, is not the subject of legal proceedings.

Many people believe that the topic of contracts has more to do with jurisprudence than with economics, but trust is currently one of the key economic categories. Higher risks and, accordingly, a lower degree of trust between the parties to the contract imply a higher price. For example, in Russian conditions, due to a lack of trust, interest rates on loans remain very high, projects based on public-private partnerships are not implemented, and the demand for state-owned property planned for privatization is low.

The practical application of the research results of nominees Oliver Hart and Bengt Holström will help improve the conditions for the implementation of contracts for each of the participants, that is, increase the level of trust between them. The widespread use of these principles can lead to a reduction in contract prices and become one of the factors in reducing inflation.

Nevertheless, the choice of winners was rather unexpected. Most experts were inclined to believe that the Nobel Prize in Economics would be given for fundamental macroeconomic research or for the development of the theory of motivation.

Andrey Margolin

Vice-Rector of RANEPA, Doctor of Economics

An American won this year's Nobel Prize in Physics David Thoules, British Duncan Haldane and Scotsman Michael Kosterlitz for theoretical discoveries of topological phase transitions and topological phases of matter

Alexander Golubov

Head of the Laboratory of Topological Quantum Phenomena in Superconducting Systems, MIPT

Kosterlitz and Thaules and independently of them, the Soviet theoretical physicist Vadim Berezinsky in the early 1970s described a model of the state of a two-dimensional film in a superconducting system - that is, in a metal that loses electrical resistance at very low temperatures. Before this, it was believed for a long time that superconductivity was impossible in a two-dimensional system.

Scientists have proven the possibility of the existence of superconductivity in a two-dimensional system and shown an interesting topological phase transition between the superconducting phase at low temperatures and the normal phase at high temperatures. They differ in that at low temperatures magnetic flux vortices are spontaneously generated - more precisely, a pair of vortices, which are destroyed at high temperatures and form single vortices.

What is a topological phase transition? The very mathematical definition of “topological” means the continuity of various objects during deformation: for example, if we use the terminology of donuts and holes, then a clay ball and a bowl molded from it are objects of the same topology that can be transferred from one to another by transformation without breaks.
But a clay ball and a clay donut are bodies of different topologies: in order to get a donut, you need to make a hole in the ball.

A common phase transition can be observed, for example, during the melting of metals, when they pass from a solid to a liquid state. This transition changes the crystal lattice of the metal and slightly moves its atoms, but does not make any fundamental changes in its internal state and does not change the topology. A topological phase transition changes the geometric properties of the system, and this is a rather unusual phenomenon. And it is the vortices shown by Kosterlitz and Thaules that change the topology of the object.

The discovery of topological phase transitions could lead to the creation of a quantum computer, which could be much more powerful than modern computers. An ordinary computer operates in a binary system: information in it is encoded by the numbers 0 and 1. A quantum processor is an analog system, it obeys not only zeros and ones, but has a greater degree of freedom. Thus, additional methods for encoding information and conducting parallel calculations arise. In addition, a conventional computer runs on silicon conductors, but a quantum one requires a different material base, which scientists have not yet been able to find.

Many different groups of scientists are now working on a quantum computer, and some have already almost created it, but there is a problem with the work time. Scientists who design qubits - the smallest information storage elements in a quantum computer - are thinking about how to preserve their quantum state for a long time, because it is easily destroyed by interaction with the external environment. And this leads to calculation errors.

It's been 52 years now Colombia is engulfed in a real civil war. More precisely, this is not so much a civil war as a confrontation between the ruling forces of the country on the one hand and a number of terrorist organizations on the other, which at first hid behind the Marxist-Leninist banner, and after the fall of the USSR began to engage in arms trafficking, drugs and kidnapping. We periodically tried to conduct a dialogue with them, but there was no result.

In the end, the entire world community demanded that Colombia resolve this issue, especially since the conflict between state armed forces and terrorists claimed more than 200 thousand lives, and more than 4 million Colombians were forced to move to other places. Neighboring states also suffered because terrorist organizations violated borders, a fundamental problem given the local landscape. In addition, the terrorists made huge money from drugs and weapons smuggling, so it was easy for them to support themselves and attract young people into their ranks. Imagine a poor young Brazilian who is given 20 thousand dollars and a rifle in his hands. Of course, he will agree to join the ranks of the radicals.

Colombia's last president, Juan Manuel Santos, tried to put an end to this. For four years, on neutral territory in Cuba, the Colombian government and the country's largest terrorist organization, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, negotiated. Eventually they reached an agreement that the terrorists would lay down their arms and cease their activities. They were even offered several seats in the Colombian Congress so that they could found their own political party there. After this, the president decided to hold a referendum on this agreement - so that Colombian citizens could speak out whether they agree or not.

However, the majority of Colombians said “no” in the referendum. The fact is that this long-term confrontation affected every Latin American family, because so many people died. And those who said “no” at the referendum actually spoke out against impunity for criminals: these people believed that especially cruel terrorists should still be punished.

The fact that the truce was achieved at the cost of enormous efforts gave the President of Colombia the right to deservedly receive the Nobel Peace Prize. But on the other hand, the second phase of negotiations is now just beginning, where options for punishment for the leaders of terrorist organizations will be discussed.

Vladimir Sudarev

Deputy Director of the Institute of Latin American Countries of the Russian Academy of Sciences

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 and 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.

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, who alone must 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.

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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What is the Nobel Prize? We can give a short answer to this question. This is a prestigious award given annually to writers, scientists and public figures. But on what basis are these outstanding individuals awarded? Who makes the final decision on awarding a prize to a particular candidate? Comprehensive answers to these questions are contained in the article. The names of historical figures and writers who were once nominated for the Nobel Prize (Russian and foreign) are also given here.

Who is Nobel?

Until 1901, no one knew what the Nobel Prize was. Because it simply did not exist. The award ceremony was organized several years after the death of Alfred Nobel. What preceded this event?

The Swedish engineer, chemist and inventor was born in 1833, in the family of an impoverished descendant of the scientist Olof Rudbeck. Since childhood, Alfred was interested in technology and science. Until the age of sixteen, he lived with his parents in Russia. True, the future philanthropist was born in Stockholm. Nobel the father moved to St. Petersburg with his family in 1833.

Great Inventor

Alfred left his father's house at the age of 16. By that time, the financial situation had improved somewhat, and the parents were able to give their inquisitive son a good education. In Europe, Nobel intensively studied chemistry. He was especially interested in explosives, a field of science whose research led Nobel to the invention of dynamite in 1863. Four years later, the scientist received the corresponding patent, which allowed him to subsequently become one of the richest people in the world.

Without going into details of the professional activities of the famous Swede, let's move on to the final part of his biography. It is this that will bring us closer to obtaining a detailed answer to the question of what the Nobel Prize is.

Merchant of Death

Scientists tend to have a fanatical attitude towards their own work. Sometimes they commit the greatest crimes in their research without even noticing it. Nobel produced and widely advertised his product without thinking about the consequences of the development of dynamite production. For this he was nicknamed “the millionaire on blood.” This is how posterity would have remembered the restless researcher under an offensive nickname, if not for one incident.

One fine spring morning (although, perhaps, it happened during the winter frost or autumn storm), the world-famous scientist woke up in his Stockholm apartment and, as usual, fondly remembered the passion of his life - dynamite. In a pleasant mood, Nobel went to the living room to drink a cup of espresso and think about a new plan to improve the technology for producing a mixture based on nitroglycerin. The scientist opened a fresh newspaper... and the thoughts caressing the soul dissipated like yesterday’s dream. On the first page he saw a message about his own death.

The world community would never have known what the Nobel Prize was if not for the mistake of an absent-minded reporter who, when writing an obituary, confused the creator of dynamite with his brother. Nobel was not upset about the death of his relative. He wasn't too upset by his own obituary either. Nobel did not like the definition that the “scribbler” gave him for the sake of a catchphrase - “merchant of death.”

Nobel Foundation

In order to change the course of events and not remain in the memory of descendants as a Millionaire on Blood or a Dynamite King, Alfred Nobel immediately sat down to draw up a will.

So, the document is ready. What is it talking about? After Nobel's death, all his property must be sold, the proceeds deposited in an account in a reliable bank. The resulting profit goes to a newly established fund, which, in turn, distributes it annually according to a strict scheme, dividing it into five equal parts. Each of them constitutes a monetary prize due to a scientist, writer or fighter for world peace. In his will, Nobel emphasized that the choice of a candidate should in no way be influenced by his nationality or citizenship.

The millionaire's relatives were furious when they learned about the will, and for a long time tried to challenge its authenticity. But that's a completely different story.

Rules for selecting a candidate

The Nobel Prize winner can be a physicist, chemist, scientist who made a discovery in the field of medicine or physiology, or the author of an outstanding literary work.

A public figure who has made a significant contribution to the abolition of slavery and the unity of nations is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. A committee named after the scientist is responsible for it. The remaining awards are approved by the following organizations:

Karolinska Institute (prize in medicine or physiology).
Swedish Academy (Literature Prize).
Royal Swedish Academy (prizes in chemistry and physics).

The prize cannot be awarded posthumously. But if, of course, the applicant died after the committee’s announcement and did not live to see the award ceremony, it remains with him. But what if there is no worthy candidate from a particular field? In this case, the prize is not awarded, and the funds are retained until the next year.

Cash bonus amount

The amount is different every year. After all, the profit from transactions from which bonuses are paid cannot be fixed. So, in 2016 it amounted to $1.1 million. And in 2007 - $1.56 million. In addition, several years ago the fund decided to reduce the premium to 20% in order to prevent a decrease in the organization's capital in the future.

It is worth saying that nomination for an award is an interesting and mysterious process. It is attended not only by members of the organizations listed above, but also by more than three thousand people (usually researchers) working in certain fields, as well as former laureates. However, the names of the nominees are kept secret for 50 years.

The presentation of the Nobel Prize is a very solemn event, attended by more than a thousand people. The banquet menu and the decoration of the hall in which it is held is a separate topic that cannot be covered in one article. Therefore, let’s move on to the most interesting part of our story, namely the names of the winners of the most prestigious award. Since their list is very extensive, we will name the most famous personalities, and first of all our compatriots.

Nobel Prize in Literature

No matter how talented a writer may be, he will not be awarded this prize if he does not strive to convey to his readers the bright, eternal. It is received by humanists, idealists, fighters for justice and those who have made a significant contribution to the development of literature. A total of 107 awards were awarded (by 2017). In 1904, 1917, 1966 and 1974, committee members were unable to find a worthy candidate.

Thus, in 1933, Ivan Bunin was awarded a prize for excellence in promoting the development of classical Russian prose. Boris Pasternak a quarter of a century later - for high achievements in lyric poetry and continuation of the traditions of the epic novel. It is worth saying that the title of the work was not included in the justification for the award. Nevertheless, the author of Doctor Zhivago was subjected to severe oppression in his homeland. It was considered good form to scold Pasternak's novel. At the same time, only a few people read it. After all, the book was banned in the USSR for a long time.

Alexander Solzhenitsyn was awarded the prize due to his high moral strength and adherence to the traditions of the Russian epic novel. He did not show up for the ceremony. Not because I was busy, but because they didn’t let me in. Belarusian writer Svetlana Alexievich is the last Russian-speaking Nobel Prize laureate. Writer Mikhail Sholokhov was also awarded.

Andrey Sakharov

What Nobel Prize was awarded to the Soviet scientist, one of the creators of the hydrogen bomb? Prizes in physics or perhaps chemistry? No. Andrei Sakharov is a peace prize laureate. He received it for his human rights activities and speeches against the development of nuclear weapons.

As already mentioned, the names of the nominees become known only after 50 years. Their number once included Leo Tolstoy, Erich Maria Remarque, which is not surprising. Tolstoy is a great humanist. Remarque actively criticized the fascist dictatorship in his books. But some of the names of the Nobel Peace Prize nominees that have become famous are truly puzzling. Hitler and Mussolini. The first was nominated in 1939, the second four years earlier. Lenin could also have been nominated for the Peace Prize. However, the First World War interfered.