Which country gives the Nobel Prize? What is the Nobel Prize for? Mathematics Prize

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 reliable bank. Income from investments should belong to the fund, which will distribute them annually in the form of bonuses to those who brought greatest benefit humanity... The indicated 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; 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 when awarding prizes, no consideration will be given to the nationality of the candidates ... "

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 rest of the awards.

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 to 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. Wherein 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, regardless of 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. To award the Peace Prize, requests are sent to governments, members international courts, professors, rectors, persons awarded the Peace Prize, or former members 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 ceremony is preceded by big job which is underway 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 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, 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 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. Dislike for Nobel institutions as a result, it turned into one of the hypostases of anti-Western sentiments, persistently preached by party ideologists and at the same time providing stable feedback.

A striking example of feedback was 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, at the same time also retained the post of General Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee. 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

• 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.

The founder of the famous prize was born in Sweden in 1833. His parents were engineers, and Nobel himself, having received a diverse education, worked in the field of chemistry, engineering and, among other things, as an inventor.

Having acquired the Bofors metallurgical concern, Alfred Nobel directed his talents to the field of weapons development. In this he was quite successful. He has 355 inventions to his credit, which brought him a considerable fortune. One of Nobel's most famous inventions is dynamite.

Oddly enough, the scientific world owes the Nobel Prize to dynamite. It so happened that in 1888, one of the French newspapers, by mistake of one of its employees, published an obituary for Alfred Nobel, who was very much alive and well at that time. The article made Nobel think about how humanity would remember him, and he decided to donate all the money he earned to a foundation that would distribute it annually in the form of bonuses to those who had brought the greatest benefit to humanity during the previous year.

Rules for awarding the prize

The Nobel Foundation was not organized immediately. All documents were approved in 1897, the fund was established in 1900, and the first award ceremony took place in 1901. According to the will of the inventor and founder, the prize is awarded for particularly important discoveries, inventions and improvements in five areas approved by Nobel:

• Physics
• Chemistry
• Physiology and medicine
• Literature
• Promoting world peace.

According to Nobel's instructions, several organizations became responsible for awarding the prize: four in Sweden and one in Norway. So for choosing the laureate who will be awarded the Peace Prize, the Norwegian Nobel Committee. The Karolinska Institute is responsible for awarding the prize in the field of physiology and medicine. The Swedish Academy received the right to award prizes in literature, and the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences was entrusted with the right to award prizes in physics and chemistry.

There are a few more mandatory conditions: award prizes only for discoveries made within one year, and give the prize to no more than three laureates in the same field. The first of the rules is actually not observed today: breakthrough discoveries in niches are not made every year. But the limit on the number of laureates, officially approved only in 1968, has always been observed.

Economics was not initially included by Nobel in the list of fields in which the prize was awarded. But in 1969, on the initiative of the Swedish Bank, a prize in economics was also established in his name. 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.

By the way, if there are two or three laureates, the amount of the prize is divided between 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).

Presentation of the Nobel Prize

The award ceremony is held every year on December 10 in Stockholm and Oslo. 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 laureate is required to give a so-called “Nobel Memorial Lecture,” which is then published by the Nobel Foundation in a special volume.

The program for the award ceremony has not changed since 1901. The regulations have been approved and verified down to the second. The program includes the awards ceremony itself, as well as the Nobel Banquet and the obligatory Nobel Concert.

The Nobel Concert is considered one of the most important 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 the concert. In connection with the two award ceremonies (in Stockholm and Oslo), two Nobel concerts are held: one on December 8 each year in Stockholm, the second in Oslo at the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony.

According to the regulations, the Nobel Prize cannot be awarded to the same person twice, but any rule has exceptions. Four scientists were awarded the 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.

In addition, the Nobel Prize has been awarded several times International Committee the Red Cross in 1917, 1944 and 1963, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in 1954 and 1981.

The absence of mathematics in the list of sciences for which the prize is awarded gives rise to a lot of speculation and jokes. The exact reason is unknown to this day. 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.”

They say, however, that either the wife or fiancée of Alfred Nobel gave preference to the mathematician and therefore Nobel excluded science from the list. However, mathematicians and computer scientists were not left without a prize. 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.

The Nobel Prize ceremony is a global event and one of the most important in the scientific world. The ceremony is broadcast annually, gathering a considerable number of audiences on television screens. This action is very beautiful, although somewhat boring.

Alfred Nobel bequeathed 94% of his fortune to organize prizes in five areas of knowledge that were interesting to him. Read more about what the prize is awarded for, what Alfred Nobel is generally known for, and why there is no Nobel Prize in mathematics.

What is Alfred Nobel famous for?

Many people know Alfred Nobel only as the person after whom the prize is named, which is awarded annually in several areas. This one was born a famous person in the first half of the nineteenth century, and died four years before its end. Alfred Nobel owns 355 different patents, his most famous invention being dynamite. This Swedish chemist, inventor, engineer and entrepreneur was also involved in charity work.

Alfred Nobel lived part of his life in Russia; from his youth he spoke four languages ​​fluently: English, German, French and Russian. After seven years of living in St. Petersburg, Alfred's father sent him to study in the United States, Russian chemist Nikolai Zinin advised him to do so. Along the way, the young man visited several European countries, and when he arrived in the United States, he worked for the inventor John Ericsson, who designed the battleship Monitor, the Noverti locomotive and became the owner of several other patents. Nobel filed his first American patent for a gas meter in 1857, but the first patent he received was for determining methods for producing gunpowder (1863).

Upon returning to Russia, Alfred Nobel took over the affairs of the family company, which carried out orders for the Russian army. The Crimean War contributed to the company's prosperity, but after it the factories were unable to return to normal production, and the family declared itself bankrupt. Nobel's parents returned to Sweden, and he devoted himself to studying explosives. In 1863 he invented the detonator, in 1867 - dynamite. In total, he patented 355 inventions.

History of the establishment of the Nobel Prize

In 1888, when Nobel's brother died, newspapers mistakenly announced Albert's death rather than his brother's. When he read his own obituary, “The Merchant of Death is Dead,” in a French newspaper, he began to think seriously about how he would be remembered by humanity. After this, he decided to change his will.

Nobel's will stipulated that all movable and immovable property of the drafter should be turned into monetary units, which should be placed in a secure financial institution. All income must belong to a specially created fund, which will distribute it in the form of cash bonuses to those who last year brought the greatest benefit human society. His special wish was that the nationality of the candidate should not be taken into account when awarding prizes.

At first the paper was received with skepticism. Relatives of Alfred Nobel called themselves offended and demanded that the document be officially declared illegal. The Nobel Foundation and the presentation of the prizes were organized by the executors of his will - secretary R. Sulman and lawyer R. Liljequist. Later, separate institutions were identified that began awarding individual prizes. When the Swedish-Norwegian union was dissolved, the Norwegian Committee became responsible for awarding the Peace Prize, and the Swedish organization for the rest.

Rules for awarding the prize to them. A. Nobel

The Statute of the Nobel Foundation determines the rules for awarding the prize. Only individuals and not organizations can be nominated (except for the Peace Prize, which can be awarded to both individuals and official organizations). One or two discoveries in the same field may be awarded in one year, but the number of laureates should not exceed three. The rule was officially added in 1968, but in fact has always been observed.

What is the Nobel Prize given for? Behind outstanding discoveries in five areas: physics, chemistry, medicine and physiology, literature, promoting peace in the world.

The monetary reward is divided among several candidates in this way: first in equal parts between the works, then according to the same principle between their authors. For example, if two discoveries are awarded, the allocated money is first divided by two. The first work has two authors - half is divided equally again, and the second - one - half is awarded to him.

Also, the award should not be awarded posthumously. But if the laureate was alive when the Nobel Prize was awarded, but passed away before the ceremony, then the prize remains with him. This rule came into effect in 1974. Until this moment, the Nobel Prize had been awarded posthumously twice: to Dag Hammarskjöld (by the way, he was the first to refuse the prize during his lifetime, citing the fact that he held a position on the Nobel Committee, and the fact that he was little known outside Sweden) and Erik Karlfeldt, the 1961 Peace Prize laureate of the year. According to the approved rule, the prize was retained by William Vickrey. The only time the Nobel Committee deviated from the rule was to award Ralph Stayman posthumously, since the committee believed him to be alive at the time of nomination.

If the members of the Nobel Committee this year have not found worthy candidates, the prize may not be awarded. In this case cash are saved until next year.

Areas in which prizes are awarded

Alfred Nobel indicated in his will that the interest on the deposit must be divided into 5 equal parts, which are intended:

• to the one who will make the most important discovery or invention in the field of physics;
• to someone who makes an improvement or important discovery in the field of chemistry;
• to someone who makes a discovery in the field of physiology or medicine;
• to the one who creates the most outstanding literary work;
• to the one who will make the most important contribution to the unity of nations, the reduction of armies, the abolition of slavery, the promotion of peace conferences.

This is how Alfred Nobel determined what to give the Nobel Prize for.

But Nobel refused the prize to famous mathematicians. He himself could not answer the question of why there was no Nobel Prize in mathematics, since his will (as it should) was made public after his departure to another world. Be that as it may, the inventor and entrepreneur provided for awards in only five areas.

People have asked before about why there is no Nobel Prize in mathematics, but the committee is not going to expand the list of prizes, for which it has been criticized more than once. Its representatives respond that since only five areas were allocated in the will of the founder of the award, it means that awards will be given in five areas. No more, no less.

Russian Nobel Prize laureates

The list of Russian laureates includes persons who, at the time of presentation of the prize, had citizenship of Russia, the USSR, Russian Empire, regardless of their actual nationality at that time. The first Nobel Prize laureate from Russia was I. Pavlov for his discoveries in physiology digestive system. Also Nobel Prize laureates were I. Mechnikov (for his work on immunity), I. Bunin (Nobel Prize in Literature), N. Semenov (chemistry), B. Pasternak (literature), P. Cherenkov, I. Tamm and I. Frank (physics), L. Landau (physics), N. Basov, A. Prokhorov (physics), M. Sholokhov (literature), A. Solzhenitsyn (literature), A. Sakharov (peace prize) and others.

Why there is no Nobel Prize in mathematics

But still the Nobel Prize in mathematics is not awarded. Why is there no Nobel Prize in mathematics? Alfred Nobel noted in his will that he chose all the disciplines after a balanced and deliberate analysis. But the train of thought of the inventor and entrepreneur remained unknown.

Most probable version The reason why mathematicians are not awarded the Nobel Prize is the following fact: Nobel insisted that inventions should provide real benefits to all humanity, and mathematics is still an exclusively theoretical science. In the end, the majority of the population does not care at all whether Fermat's theorem has been proven or not. But if the queen of sciences is applied to physics or chemistry, outstanding scientists are awarded precisely in these disciplines.

Versions related to privacy

There is also a version that Alfred Nobel’s wife allegedly cheated on him with a mathematician. It was for this that the scientist became angry with the queen of sciences and did not add her to the will. In fact, Nobel was not married at all, and this is just a memorable explanation. At the age of forty-three, he placed an advertisement in the newspaper, which said that he was looking for a housewife, translator and secretary all rolled into one. Bertha Kinski responded to the ad. But soon she left for Austria and got married, and her relationship with Alfred remained exclusively friendly.

By the way, it was Bertha Kinski who advised Nobel to include the Peace Prize in his will. The Nobel Foundation later awarded the prize to her.

Another version is Alfred Nobel’s dislike for the mathematician Mittag-Leffler. Then he was one of the most likely contenders for the first prize. The reasons for the hostility are not exactly known. Some sources claim that Mittag-Leffler tried to court Nobel's fiancée, others that he annoyingly demanded donations for Stockholm University. It can be assumed that this was also the reason for the exclusion of the queen of sciences from their list.

"Ghosts" of the Nobel Prize in Mathematics

Although there is no Nobel Prize in mathematics, there are several awards that take its place. Equivalents are the Fields and Abel Prizes, as well as the Bank of Sweden Prize in Economics.

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 to 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 indicated 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 major discovery or improvement in the field of chemistry, the third - to the one who has achieved outstanding success in the field of physiology or medicine, the fourth - to the one who has 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 promoting 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 lawyers 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 said prize, which was established in memory of Alfred Nobel, is awarded on December 10, following the presentation of others Nobel laureates. Officially called the Alfred Nobel Prize in Economics, it was first awarded in 1969.

Procedure for awarding prizes.

A. Nobel did not leave instructions on how to select scientists for the award. The rules were developed after his death and have remained virtually unchanged since then.

The prize cannot be awarded jointly to more than three people (this was decided in 1968) and can only be awarded posthumously if the applicant was alive at the time the prize was announced (usually in October) but died before 10 December of this year (the decision was made in 1974).

Prizes are awarded not by the Nobel Foundation itself, but by special Nobel committees for each area that play 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 suggestions 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. Every year in preparatory work Several thousand specialists are involved.

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 to 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 laureates undergo final approval and are announced to the whole world during a press conference in Stockholm, which is attended by representatives of all the most important news agencies. The reasons for the award are also briefly stated. Press conferences are usually attended by specialists from various areas science and technology, which can provide more complete explanations of the achievements of the laureates and the significance of their contribution to global progress. Subsequently, the Nobel Foundation invites the laureates and their families to Stockholm and Oslo on December 10.

Prizes in physics, chemistry, physiology and medicine, literature and economics are presented in Copenhagen in the Concert Hall by the King of Sweden, the Nobel Peace Prize is presented by the Chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee in Oslo in the presence of the King of Norway and members of the royal family.

Prize includes gold medal, diploma and monetary reward. 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. On next year 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. A particularly heated debate flared up three years ago, when the Nobel Prize was awarded for research into the regulatory role of nitric oxide in cardiovascular system awarded to three scientists from the USA - F. Murad, R. Furchgott and L. Ignarro. However, no less contribution to the study biological role Nitric oxide was added 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.

When preparing this article, materials from the following sites were used:

Vladimir Dergachev

Nobel Prizes are awarded by four Swedish Nobel Committees, which are special bodies of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, Karolinska Institutet ( medical university) and the Swedish (Writing) Academy. The Nobel Prize in Economics or more precisely the "Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel" is awarded by the Bank of Sweden. In Stockholm, Nobel Prizes are awarded in physics, chemistry, physiology and medicine, literature, and economics.

The Fifth Nobel Peace Prize Committee is located in the Norwegian Parliament (Storting) and is a division of the Norwegian Nobel Institute. The size of the award fluctuates depending on the income of the Nobel Foundation and was reduced to $1.1 million in 2012.
The Swedish Academy is located in the Old Town in the building of the former Stockholm stock exchange. Here decisions are made on awarding Nobel Prizes in literature. This miniature Academy has only 18 life members. The building houses a museum dedicated to the inventor of dynamite, Alfred Nobel, who established the most prestigious prize in the world. Nobel spent his childhood in Russia and knew five languages.

A fragment of the main entrance to the Stockholm Concert Hall, where the Nobel Prize award ceremony is taking place. Sculptural composition of Carl Milles "Orpheus".


Photo by Vladimir Dergachev

In this hall, in 2000, the last laureate from Russia, physicist academician Zhores Alferov, now a deputy, received the Nobel Prize State Duma on the list of the Communist Party Russian Federation.


Photo: EPA

Hotel where Nobel laureates stay


Photo by Anton Dergachev

After the Nobel Prize ceremony, a banquet is held in the Blue Hall of Stockholm City Hall, which is attended by The Royal Family and a thousand guests. If you were not invited to the banquet, do not be upset. You can order the “Nobel menu” at the town hall restaurant at a time convenient for you, for only about 200 euros.
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The Nobel Peace Prizes are awarded and presented in the Norwegian capital of Oslo. The first Nobel Peace Prize in the twenty-first century was awarded to the accompaniment of American missiles and bombs exploding on Afghan soil, the United Nations and its Secretary General. If in the West this event was regarded as a triumph of democracy, then in the Muslim world the assessments were diametrically opposite. Even in the Christian East (Moscow) the words were heard: “Peace Prize, posthumously.” An organization created to maintain international security, V last years withdrew from performing the main functions. The UN often appears on the Eurasian continent as an extra in American geopolitics.
The award ceremony takes place in the Oslo City Hall. IN common days Anyone can enter the town hall. It is only in the “city halls” of corrupt countries that you have to protect power from the people.
Here before the breakup Soviet Union in 1990, the “petrel of universal human values” Mikhail Gorbachev received the Nobel Peace Prize.

Photo by Vladimir Dergachev

The Nobel Prizes are awarded in the West and primarily reflect the preferences of Western Christian civilization. Therefore, the frequent indignation of the “brothers of the Slavs” that the Nobel Peace Prizes are awarded to the wrong people is groundless. In the Soviet Union there was an International Lenin Prize. In democratic Russia there are hardly enough funds and resources to support home-grown oligarchs and show business, so there is no similar international peace prize. Perhaps an alternative to the Nobel Prize in the near future will be the Chinese Confucius Peace Prize. The award was established in 2010 on the initiative of a Chinese businessman, and is awarded to peace fighters according to the East. In 2011, the prize was awarded to Vladimir Putin. Thus, both the West and the East noted the shyness Russian leaders(Gorbachev and Putin) between West and East.