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Nobel Prize awarded work

Nobel Peace Prize 1970

Bread for a hungry world

The story of Norman Borlaug and the green revolution demonstrates how the combination of science, education and social entrepreneurship can transform the world – and save millions of lives.

Borlaug was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1970: “We have made this choice in the hope that providing bread will also give the world peace.”
Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1905

The discovery of the tubercle bacillus

On 24 March 1882, German physician Robert Koch announced the discovery of the bacterium that causes tuberculosis, a disease that caused as many as a quarter of all deaths in Europe.
Robert Koch working in his laboratory

Robert Koch working in his laboratory at Kimberley, South Africa. Photogravure of gouache painting.

Wellcome Images, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1952

The discovery of the first antibiotic remedy against tuberculosis

After Robert Koch discovered that tuberculosis is caused by a bacterium, the hunt for a cure began. In 1939 Selman Waksman and colleagues began systematic studies of how microorganisms in soil affect tubercle bacteria. 
Selman A. Waksman at work in the laboratory

Selman A. Waksman at work in the laboratory, 1953.

New York World-Telegram and the Sun staff photographer: Higgins, Roger, photographer. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Featured Nobel Prize laureates in physiology or medicine

Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2009

Why we age

Why do we age? And why do some people age faster than others? The secret lies in our telomeres and the enzyme telomerase which was first discovered by Elizabeth Blackburn and affects the way our cells age.
Elizabeth Blackburn in her lab at the University of California, San Francisco

© Univ of California, San Francisco 2009, Photo: Elisabeth Fall/fallfoto.com

Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1964

The structure of penicillin

Dorothy Crowfoot Hodgkin was arguably the most outstanding X-ray crystallographer of her time. She succeeded in determining the structure of penicillin and later determined the structure of vitamin B12.
Dorothy Crowfoot Hodgkin

Photo from the Nobel Foundation archive.

Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1901

Work on serum therapy

Diphtheria took thousands of lives before a cure was found. Read about the “demon” that hounded Emil von Behring, and his revolutionizing work that earned him the first medicine prize in 1901.
Emil von Behring

Photo from the Nobel Foundation archive.

Who did what?

Truth, Trust and Hope

Nobel Prize Summit 2023

Join this years’ Nobel Prize Summit

We live in a world of interconnected crises: emerging pandemics and health emergencies, inflationary and monetary pressures, war, climate change and increased stresses on society and the environment. The volume, velocity and reach of disinformation in today’s world weaken public deliberation and undermine trust in scientists, the institutions and governments they serve – and democracy itself.

Join the Nobel Foundation and U.S. National Academy of Sciences online or in-person for the Nobel Prize Summit: Truth, Trust and Hope from 24-26 May 2023. Registration is now open.
Nobel Prize Summit

Nobel Prize laureates share their thoughts

Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2022

“If you learned something from it, it’s not a failure”

Karolinska Institutet student Sofia Iskrak met 2022 chemistry laureate Carolyn Bertozzi to ask her pressing questions, including what Bertozzi was like as a student, her favourite science-themed reads, and her advice for students who are thinking of pursuing science.

News

Women who changed the world

Inspirational women

Literary mastery, pioneering science, life-saving discoveries and actions for peace and human rights – achievements of women around the world awarded the Nobel Prize.

Read more about the awarded women

Nobel Prize awarded work

Watch the documentary series

Five documentaries inspired by the Nobel Peace Prize

A team of female Yazidi deminers in Iraq attempting to clear their land of mines left behind by ISIS.  A team of scientists on an extraordinary mission in Mozambique to help better our understanding of climate change. A man building prosthetic legs to help victims of war walk again in South Sudan … All are inspired by Nobel Peace Prize laureates.

Into the fire - image

Questions and answers

What are the Nobel Prize categories?

The Nobel Prize categories are physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature and peace and were laid out in the will of Alfred Nobel. Find out more in the FAQ.
The Nobel Prize medal.

The Nobel Prize medal.

© Nobel Prize Outreach. Photo: Clément Morin.

Nobel Prize nominations

2023 Nobel Peace Prize nominations

The Norwegian Nobel Committee received 305 candidates for the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize. 93 of these are organisations.

Nobel Peace Prize award ceremony 2021.

Nobel Peace Prize award ceremony 2021 in the Oslo City Hall in Norway.

© Nobel Prize Outreach. Photo: Geir Anders Rybakken Ørslien.

Are the nominations made public?

Did you know that there is no public list of the current year’s nominees for the peace prize? The complete list of nominees of any year’s prizes is not disclosed for 50 years. The same goes for all the prize categories. Learn more about the nomination process in a this Q&A.

Peace Prize nomination process

The nomination process for Nobel Peace Prize laureates.

© Nobel Media. Ill. Niklas Elmehed

Nobel Prizes 2022

The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2022

Sequencing the genome of the Neanderthal

The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2022 was awarded to Svante Pääbo “for his discoveries concerning the genomes of extinct hominins and human evolution.”
Denisova, Neanderthal and H. sapiens

© The Nobel Committe for Physiology or Medicine. Ill. Mattias Karlén

The Nobel Prize in Literature 2022

Exploring the role of memory in our lives

The Nobel Prize in Literature 2022 was awarded to Annie Ernaux “for the courage and clinical acuity with which she uncovers the roots, estrangements and collective restraints of personal memory.”
Annie Ernaux.jpg

Credit: Annie Ernaux/ Photo: Catherine Hélie, Gallimard.

Discover Nobel Prize lessons

Reliable and easy to use

Bring the 2022 Nobel Prizes into the classroom! The lessons are free and easy to use right away with ready-made slide shows, a speaker’s manuscripts and student assignments.

The 2022 prizes range from research on quantum mechanics and research on human evolution to documenting war crimes and the role of banks in financial crises.
2022 Nobel Prizes

Illustrations: Johan Jarnestad/The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, The Nobel Committe for Physiology or Medicine. Ill. Mattias Karlén and Niklas Elmehed. © Nobel Prize Outreach

Explore prizes and laureates

Nobel Prize Summit 2023

24-26 May 2023

Truth, Trust and Hope

Learn more

Nobel Prize lectures 2022

Watch the Nobel Prize lectures

Watch the Nobel Prize lectures and all other streams from the Nobel Week here!
See the streams here!

Alfred Nobel – Established the Nobel Prize

Alfred Nobel's last will

On 27 November 1895, Alfred Nobel signed his last will in Paris, France. The Swedish dynamite millionaire, who thought that his invention would end all wars, had now realised that it was a very deadly product. Wanting to make amends, he did what no man of such wealth had done before …

Alfred Nobel Will

The very first Nobel Prizes

On 10 December 1901 the first Nobel Prizes were awarded, in physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature and peace. Read more about the first prizes.

The first Nobel Prize Award Ceremony was held in 1901 at the Royal Academy of Music, Stockholm.

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Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1930

The Blood Typing Game

How much do you know about blood types? Did you know that human blood groups were discovered by Nobel Prize laureate Karl Landsteiner in 1901?

Learn more about the way to find out about the human blood groups, blood typing and the importance of safe blood transfusions. See if you can save the lives of the patients in the game!
Blood typing game
Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1904

Pavlov's Dog

Is it possible to train a dog to drool on command? Learn about conditioned reflexes in this interactive game!

With this animated game, teachers are able to illustrate classical conditioning in the classroom. The object of the game is to train Pavlov’s dog to respond to a signal that it will associate with being fed.

In 1904, Ivan Pavlov was awarded with Nobel Prize for his pioneering studies of how the digestive system works.
Pavlov's Dog Game

Try a puzzle

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Nobel destinations

Stockholm, Sweden

Nobel Prize Museum

The Nobel Prize Museum in Stockholm, Sweden, illustrates a century of creativity, where visitors can follow the changes of the 20th century through the Nobel Prize and the Nobel Prize laureates.
The Nobel Prize: Ideas Changing the World (3)

The museum showcases the discoveries and creativity of the Nobel Prize laureates.

Photo: Åke Eson Lindman

Oslo, Norway

Nobel Peace Center

Located in the heart of Oslo, Norway, the Nobel Peace Center is a place where you can experience and learn about the various Nobel Peace Prize laureates.
NPC Nye Nobels Hage 10

The story of each peace laureate is told at the museum.

Photo: Johannes Granseth/Nobel Peace Center

In memoriam

Kenzaburo Oe passes away at 88

Japanese author Kenzaburo Oe passed away on 3 March 2023. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature 1994 with the motivation “who with poetic force creates an imagined world, where life and myth condense to form a disconcerting picture of the human predicament today.”
Kenzaburo Oe

Physicist K. Alex Müller dies

K. Alexander Müller was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics 1987 for the discovery of new superconducting materials He passed away on 9 January, age 95.

K. Alexander Müller

Edward C. Prescott 1940‒2022

Edward C. Prescott passed away on 6 November 2022, age 81. He was awarded the 2004 prize in economic sciences for his contributions to dynamic macroeconomics. The work influenced the monetary and fiscal policies of governments and laid the basis for the increased independence of many central banks.
Edward C. Prescott