Nobel Prize in Chemistry

Nobel stipulated in his last will and testament that his money be used to create a series of prizes for those who confer the "greatest benefit on mankind" in physics, chemistry, peace, physiology or medicine, and literature.{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/nobel_alfred.shtml |title=History – Historic Figures: Alfred Nobel (1833–1896) |publisher=BBC |access-date=15 January 2010 |archive-date=27 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191227150003/http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/nobel_alfred.shtml |url-status=live }}{{cite web |url=https://www.britannica.com/nobelprize/article-9056008 |title=Guide to Nobel Prize |publisher=Britannica |access-date=10 June 2013 |archive-date=13 October 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141013070208/http://www.britannica.com/nobelprize/article-9056008 |url-status=live }} Though Nobel wrote several wills during his lifetime, the last was written a little over a year before he died, and signed at the Swedish-Norwegian Club in Paris on 27 November 1895.Ragnar Sohlman: 1983, Page 7{{Cite news|last = von Euler|first = U.S.|title = The Nobel Foundation and its Role for Modern Day Science|url = http://resources.metapress.com/pdf-preview.axd?code=xu7j67w616m06488&size=largest|format = PDF|publisher = Springer-Verlag|work = Die Naturwissenschaften|date = 6 June 1981|access-date = 21 January 2010|url-status = dead|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110714080803/http://resources.metapress.com/pdf-preview.axd?code=xu7j67w616m06488&size=largest|archive-date = 14 July 2011}} Nobel bequeathed 94% of his total assets, 31 million Swedish kronor (US$198 million, €176 million in 2016), to establish and endow the five Nobel Prizes.[http://nobelprize.org/alfred_nobel/will/index.html "The Will of Alfred Nobel"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110604072610/http://nobelprize.org/alfred_nobel/will/index.html |date=4 June 2011 }}, nobelprize.org. Retrieved 6 November 2007. Due to the level of skepticism surrounding the will, it was not until 26 April 1897 that it was approved by the Storting (Norwegian Parliament).{{cite web|url=http://nobelprize.org/nobelfoundation/history/lemmel/index.html |title=The Nobel Foundation – History |publisher=Nobelprize.org |access-date=15 January 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100109140259/http://nobelprize.org/nobelfoundation/history/lemmel/index.html |archive-date=9 January 2010}}Agneta Wallin Levinovitz: 2001, Page 13 The executors of his will were Ragnar Sohlman and Rudolf Lilljequist, who formed the Nobel Foundation to take care of Nobel's fortune and organize the prizes.{{Cn|date=October 2024}}

The members of the Norwegian Nobel Committee that were to award the Peace Prize were appointed shortly after the will was approved. The prize-awarding organizations followed: the Karolinska Institutet on 7 June, the Swedish Academy on 9 June, and the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences on 11 June.{{cite web |url=http://www.infoplease.com/spot/nobel-prize-history.html |title=Nobel Prize History — |publisher=Infoplease |date=13 October 1999 |access-date=15 January 2010 |archive-date=26 April 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130426043912/http://www.infoplease.com/spot/nobel-prize-history.html |url-status=live }}{{cite web |url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/416852/Nobel-Foundation |title=Nobel Foundation (Scandinavian organisation) |publisher=Britannica |access-date=10 June 2013 |archive-date=14 May 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130514081249/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/416852/Nobel-Foundation |url-status=live }} The Nobel Foundation then reached an agreement on guidelines for how the Nobel Prize should be awarded. In 1900, the Nobel Foundation's newly created statutes were promulgated by King Oscar II.AFP, [http://www.thelocal.se/14776/20091005/ "Alfred Nobel's last will and testament"] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091009110708/http://www.thelocal.se/14776/20091005/ |date=9 October 2009 }}, The Local (5 October 2009): accessed 20 January 2010.[https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/416856/Nobel-Prize "Nobel Prize] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150429230820/https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/416856/Nobel-Prize |date=29 April 2015 }}" (2007), in Encyclopædia Britannica, accessed 15 January 2009, from Encyclopædia Britannica Online: {{blockquote|After Nobel's death, the Nobel Foundation was set up to carry out the provisions of his will and to administer his funds. In his will, he had stipulated that four different institutions—three Swedish and one Norwegian—should award the prizes. From Stockholm, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences confers the prizes for physics, chemistry, and economics, the Karolinska Institute confers the prize for physiology or medicine, and the Swedish Academy confers the prize for literature. The Norwegian Nobel Committee based in Oslo confers the prize for peace. The Nobel Foundation is the legal owner and functional administrator of the funds and serves as the joint administrative body of the prize-awarding institutions, but it is not concerned with the prize deliberations or decisions, which rest exclusively with the four institutions. }} According to Nobel's will, The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences were to award the Prize in Chemistry.

{{Main article|Nobel Prize}}

The committee and institution serving as the selection board for the prize typically announce the names of the laureates in October. The prize is then awarded at formal ceremonies held annually on 10 December, the anniversary of Alfred Nobel's death. "The highlight of the Nobel Prize Award Ceremony in Stockholm is when each Nobel Laureate steps forward to receive the prize from the hands of His Majesty the King of Sweden. The Nobel Laureate receives three things: a diploma, a medal and a document confirming the prize amount" ("What the Nobel Laureates Receive"). Later the Nobel Banquet is held in Stockholm City Hall.

A maximum of three laureates and two different works may be selected. The award can be given to a maximum of three recipients per year. It consists of a gold medal, a diploma, and a cash grant.{{citation needed|date=September 2022}}

{{Main list|List of nominees for the Nobel Prize in Chemistry}}

File:Vant Hoff.jpg (1852–1911) received the first Nobel Prize in Chemistry.]]

The Nobel Laureates in chemistry are selected by a committee that consists of five members elected by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. In its first stage, several thousand people are asked to nominate candidates. These names are scrutinized and discussed by experts until only the laureates remain. This slow and thorough process is arguably what gives the prize its importance.

Forms, which amount to a personal and exclusive invitation, are sent to about three thousand selected individuals to invite them to submit nominations. The names of the nominees are never publicly announced, and neither are they told that they have been considered for the Prize. Nomination records are sealed for fifty years. In practice, some nominees do become known. It is also common for publicists to make such a claim – founded or not.

The nominations are screened by committee, and a list is produced of approximately two hundred preliminary candidates. This list is forwarded to selected experts in the field. They remove all but approximately fifteen names. The committee then submits a report with recommendations to the appropriate institution.

While posthumous nominations are not permitted, awards can occur if the individual died in the months between the nomination and the decision of the prize committee.

The award in chemistry requires that the significance of achievements being recognized is "tested by time". In practice, it means that the lag between the discovery and the award is typically on the order of 20 years and can be much longer. As a downside of this approach, not all scientists live long enough for their work to be recognized.

A Chemistry Nobel Prize laureate earns a gold medal, a diploma bearing a citation, and a sum of money.{{cite web |author=Tom Rivers |url=https://www.voanews.com/a/article-2009-nobel-laureates-receive-their-honors-78989292/368898.html |title=2009 Nobel Laureates Receive Their Honors | Europe |publisher=.voanews.com |date=10 December 2009 |access-date=15 January 2010 |archive-date=4 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121004132331/http://www.voanews.com/content/article-2009-nobel-laureates-receive-their-honors-78989292/368898.html |url-status=live }}

{{Main|Nobel Prize medal#Physics and Chemistry}}

The medal for the Nobel Prize in Chemistry is identical in design to the Nobel Prize in Physics medal.{{cite web|title=A unique gold medal|url=https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/about/the-nobel-medals-and-the-medal-for-the-prize-in-economic-sciences/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170411152140/https://historical.ha.com/itm/miscellaneous/georg-wittig-nobel-prize-medal-in-chemistry-received-in-1979-together-with-four-additional-medals/a/6165-49227.s|archive-date=11 April 2017|publisher=Nobel Foundation|access-date=20 June 2023}}{{cite web|title=The Nobel Prize medals in physics and chemistry|url=https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/facts/the-nobel-medal-for-physics-and-chemistry/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230331125610/https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/facts/the-nobel-medal-for-physics-and-chemistry/|archive-date=31 March 2023|publisher=Nobel Foundation|access-date=20 June 2023}} The reverse of the physics and chemistry medals depict the Goddess of Nature in the form of Isis as she emerges from clouds holding a cornucopia. The Genius of Science holds the veil which covers Nature's 'cold and austere face'. It was designed by Erik Lindberg and is manufactured by Svenska Medalj in Eskilstuna. It is inscribed "Inventas vitam iuvat excoluisse per artes" ("It is beneficial to have improved [human] life through discovered arts") an adaptation of "inventas aut qui vitam excoluere per artes" from line 663 from book 6 of the Aeneid by the Roman poet Virgil.{{cite web|title=The Nobel Prize medal in physiology or medicine|url=https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/facts/the-nobel-medal-for-physiology-or-medicine/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230416152940/https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/facts/the-nobel-medal-for-physiology-or-medicine/|archive-date=16 April 2023|publisher=Nobel Foundation|access-date=20 June 2023}} A plate below the figures is inscribed with the name of the recipient. The text "REG. ACAD. SCIENT. SUEC." denoting the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences is inscribed on the reverse.

Nobel laureates receive a diploma directly from the hands of the King of Sweden. Each diploma is uniquely designed by the prize-awarding institutions for the laureate that receives it. The diploma contains a picture and text which states the name of the laureate and normally a citation of why they received the prize.{{cite web |url=https://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/about/diplomas/ |title=The Nobel Diplomas |publisher=Nobelprize.org |access-date=24 August 2014 |archive-date=13 April 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150413221248/http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/about/diplomas/ |url-status=live }}

At the awards ceremony, the laureate is given a document indicating the award sum. The amount of the cash award may differ from year to year, based on the funding available from the Nobel Foundation. For example, in 2009 the total cash awarded was 10 million SEK (US$1.4 million),{{cite web |url=https://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/about/amounts/ |title=The Nobel Prize Amounts |publisher=Nobelprize.org |access-date=24 August 2014 |archive-date=20 July 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180720111123/https://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/about/amounts/ |url-status=live }} but in 2012, the amount was 8 million Swedish Krona, or US$1.1 million.{{cite web|url=https://www.cnn.com/2012/06/11/world/europe/nobel-prize-cut/index.html|title=Nobel prize amounts to be cut 20% in 2012|publisher=CNN|date=11 June 2012|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120709002611/http://articles.cnn.com/2012-06-11/world/world_europe_nobel-prize-cut_1_nobel-prize-nobel-foundation-alfred-nobel?_s=PM:EUROPE|archive-date=9 July 2012}} If there are two laureates in a particular category, the award grant is divided equally between the recipients, but if there are three, the awarding committee may opt to divide the grant equally, or award half to one recipient and a quarter to each of the two others.{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/science/2009/oct/05/nobel-prize-medicine-2009-award|title=Nobel prize for medicine shared by scientists for work on ageing and cancer | Science | guardian.co.uk|publisher=Guardian|date=5 October 2009|access-date=15 January 2010|location=London|first=Ian|last=Sample|archive-date=13 January 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200113060257/https://www.theguardian.com/science/2009/oct/05/nobel-prize-medicine-2009-award|url-status=live}}{{cite news |first=Ian|last=Sample|url=https://www.theguardian.com/science/2008/oct/07/physics.nobel |title=Three share Nobel prize for physics | Science | guardian.co.uk |publisher=Guardian |date=7 October 2008 |access-date=10 February 2010 |location=London |archive-date=1 June 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190601140728/https://www.theguardian.com/science/2008/oct/07/physics.nobel |url-status=live }}{{cite web |author=David Landes |url=http://www.thelocal.se/22604/20091012/ |title=Americans claim Nobel economics prize – The Local |date=12 October 2009 |publisher=Thelocal.se |access-date=15 January 2010 |archive-date=20 November 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121120105624/http://www.thelocal.se/22604/20091012/ |url-status=live }}{{cite web |url=http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/physics/laureates/2009/press.html |title=The 2009 Nobel Prize in Physics – Press Release |publisher=Nobelprize.org |date=6 October 2009 |access-date=10 February 2010 |archive-date=30 May 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130530214450/http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/physics/laureates/2009/press.html |url-status=live }}

{{Main list|List of Nobel laureates in Chemistry}}

In recent years, the Nobel Prize in Chemistry has drawn criticism from chemists who feel that the prize is more frequently awarded to non-chemists than to chemists.{{cite journal|title=What, Another Nobel Prize in Chemistry to a Nonchemist?|date=9 February 2012|doi=10.1002/anie.201108514|pmid=22323188|volume=51|issue=8|journal=Angewandte Chemie International Edition|pages=1734–1735|last1 = Hoffmann|first1 = Roald}} In the 30 years leading up to 2012, the Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded ten times for work classified as biochemistry or molecular biology, and once to a materials scientist. In the ten years leading up to 2012, only four prizes were awarded for work strictly in chemistry. Commenting on the scope of the award, The Economist explained that the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences is bound by Nobel's bequest, which specifies awards only in physics, chemistry, literature, medicine, and peace. Biology was in its infancy in Nobel's day and no award was established. The Economist argued there is no Nobel Prize for mathematics either, another major discipline, and added that Nobel's stipulation of no more than three winners is not readily applicable to modern physics, where progress is typically made through huge collaborations rather than by individuals alone.{{cite news|url=https://www.economist.com/blogs/economist-explains/2015/10/economist-explains-9|title=The Economist explains: Why is the Nobel prize in chemistry given for things that are not chemistry?|newspaper=The Economist|date=7 October 2015|access-date=13 October 2015|archive-date=11 October 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151011044159/http://www.economist.com/blogs/economist-explains/2015/10/economist-explains-9|url-status=live}}

In 2020, Ioannidis et al. reported that half of the Nobel Prizes for science awarded between 1995 and 2017 were clustered in just a few disciplines within their broader fields. Atomic physics, particle physics, cell biology, and neuroscience dominated the two subjects outside chemistry, while molecular chemistry was the chief prize-winning discipline in its domain. Molecular chemists won 5.3% of all science Nobel Prizes during this period.{{cite journal|last1=Ioannidis|first1=John|last2=Cristea |first2=Ioana-Alina|last3=Boyack|first3=Kevin|date=July 29, 2020|title=Work honored by Nobel prizes clusters heavily in a few scientific fields|journal=PLOS ONE|volume=15|issue=7|pages=e0234612|doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0234612|pmid=32726312|pmc=7390258|bibcode=2020PLoSO..1534612I|doi-access=free}}

• List of Nobel laureates in Chemistry
• Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize
• List of chemistry awards
• List of Nobel laureates
• Nobel laureates by country
• Priestley Medal
• Wolf Prize in Chemistry
• List of female nominees for the Nobel Prize

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{{note|1}}A. Until 2022

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• {{cite web | title = All Nobel Laureates in Chemistry | publisher = Nobelprize.org | url = http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/chemistry/laureates/ | access-date = 10 October 2019 | archive-date = 3 June 2016 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160603000503/https://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/chemistry/laureates/ | url-status = live }}

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• [https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/chemistry/ The Nobel Prize in Chemistry] at the Nobel Foundation.
• [http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/chemistry/medal.html The Nobel Prize Medal for Physics and Chemistry] at the Nobel Foundation.
• [http://osulibrary.oregonstate.edu/specialcollections/coll/pauling/bond/pictures/nobel-chemistry-medal.html "Nobel Prize for Chemistry. Front and back images of the medal. 1954"]. "Source: Photo by Eric Arnold. Ava Helen and Linus Pauling Papers. Honors and Awards, 1954h2.1." "All Documents and Media: Pictures and Illustrations", Linus Pauling and The Nature of the Chemical Bond: A Documentary History, The Valley Library, Oregon State University. Accessed 7 December 2007.
• Graphics: National Chemistry Nobel Prize shares 1901–2009 [http://www.idsia.ch/~juergen/chem.html by citizenship at the time of the award] and [http://www.idsia.ch/~juergen/chemnat.html by country of birth]. From J. Schmidhuber (2010), [https://web.archive.org/web/20140327012415/http://www.idsia.ch/~juergen/nobelshare.html Evolution of National Nobel Prize Shares in the 20th Century] at [https://arxiv.org/abs/1009.2634 arXiv:1009.2634v1]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20071030033639/http://nobelprize.org/award_ceremonies/prize.html "What the Nobel Laureates Receive"] – Featured link in "The Nobel Prize Award Ceremonies".

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*Chemistry

Category:Chemistry awards

Category:Awards of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences