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From: Nobelprize.org
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Subject: News from Nobelprize.org


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News from Nobelprize.org

October 16, 2009

Six announcements, 13 new Nobel Laureates; the recipients of the 2009 Nobel Prizes, along with the Prize in Economic Sciences, are now all known. Needless to say, one name is rather dominating the current coverage in the news, but, as ever, this year's Laureates include people who have contributed to a wonderful range of fields. Browse the links below to immerse yourself in subjects ranging from the capture and transmission of information by light to questions of human governance.

The 2009 announcements have seen a couple of milestones passed. This was the 100th time that the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine has been awarded (like all the Nobel Prizes, the Medicine Prize has some 'missing years' during which the Prize was not awarded, for instance during the World Wars). And, with 5 women among the recipients, this was the all time record year for female Laureates. Five, however, also happens to be the current percentage of women among the total ranks of all Laureates!

As ever, we've attempted to capture the excitement of the announcements and the essence of the new Laureates' work in a variety of ways, as illustrated by the selection below. So please take a look, and we're always happy to hear what you think.

Adam Smith
Editor-in-Chief

 


George Smith PHYSICS: HEARING THE NEWS
Nobelprize.org tries to conduct telephone interviews with all new Laureates immediately following each announcement. In the case of George Smith, one of the three new Physics Laureates, it turned out that he had missed the wake-up call from the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, and so had not yet heard the news himself.
Listen to the interview »
 


Ada Yonath CHEMISTRY: LEARNING FROM POLAR BEARS
Each telephone interview is also transcribed, and in this text transcript of the interview with new Chemistry Laureate Ada Yonath, you can learn how a fall from a bicycle led her to encounter some little known facts about polar bears, that in turn led to her Nobel Prize-awarded work on the ribosome.
Read the full story »
 


Medicine 2009 MEDICINE: HOT OFF THE PRESS
Each new announcement is accompanied by immediate posting of the official press releases, plus further information in the case of the sciences, from the Nobel Prize-awarding institutions. Here the work of the three new Nobel Laureates in Physiology or Medicine on telomeres and telomerase is succinctly described in the official press release.
Read the press release »
 


Literature Speed Read LITERATURE: THE DIFFICULTIES OF BEING ONESELF
Every new piece of Nobel Prize-awarded work is also summarized in Nobelprize.org's own Speed Reads. Here, for instance, is a very brief overview of the work of Herta Müller, the new Nobel Laureate in Literature, whose writing chronicles the life of the outsider.
Catch-up on the Speed Read »
 


Geir Lundestad PEACE: THE INSIDER'S VIEW
Immediately following every announcement, we interview a representative of the Prize-awarding committee to obtain the most authoritative word on the new Nobel Prize. Here, for instance, Geir Lundestad answers questions about the decision to award the Nobel Peace Prize to President Barack Obama.
See the interview »
 


Economics Announcement ECONOMICS: THE MOMENT OF TRUTH
And, if you missed the live broadcasts, the English version of each announcement is also available as video on-demand. In fact the announcements are always made first in Swedish (or Norwegian for the Nobel Peace Prize), and it is that first mention of the new Laureates' names that the assembled crowds react to. So if you want the full drama, you'll have to listen live – next year!
Watch the announcement of the Prize in Economic Sciences »