Journal of Cell Science

What is it famous for? Awarding the Nobel prizes, which include the most prestigious prizes in science (and the only ones that seem to attract significant public attention and respect). The prizes are announced in October. How did it start? It was established in 1900 along lines set down by Alfred Nobel in his will, which lays down both the institutes responsible for making the awards and the areas in which prizes will be awarded: physics and chemistry are awarded by committees from the Swedish Academy of Sciences, physiology/ medicine by the Karolinska Institute (Stockholm, Sweden), literature by the Swedish Academy and peace by a committee elected by the Norwegian Storting. The Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel was instituted by the Bank of Sweden in 1968. Where did the money come from? Alfred Nobel's father, Immanuel, was an engineer and inventor in Stockholm. He got off to a rocky start and was forced into bankruptcy. While his wife Andrietta supported the family with a grocery store, Immanuel went to Russia to start a new career supplying army equipment. Alfred inherited an interest in explosives and went into business producing dynamite from its far less stable precursor, nitroglycerine. The process was not straightforward; Alfred's brother Emil and several other people were killed in an accidental explosion in 1864. Why did a man who made explosives initiate a peace prize? One of Nobel's few female friends, Countess Bertha von Suttner, was prominent in the peace movement. She is credited with inspiring Nobel to think that those who encourage peace should be rewarded in this world, not just the next. She received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1905, nine years after he died. How much is a Nobel prize worth? In 1901, when the prizes began, each was worth 150 800 Swedish crowns. Because of wise investment by the Foundation, the amount has increased dramatically, and in 1996 each prize is 7.4 million Swedish crowns (a little more than a million US dollars). How are the recipients of the prizes chosen? Every year, the committee responsible for each prize sends out invitations to nominate candidates to prominent members of the relevant community (in the case of physiology/ medicine, more than 2000 invitations go out). Only invited nominations are considered, and nominees have to be alive. The nominations are evaluated by the relevant committee; each has five members and a …