1986
RITA LEVI-MONTALCINI
Rita Levi-Montalcini began her scientific career in danger, as a Jew in Fascist Italy. She ended it in triumph, as the neuroembryologist who co-discovered nerve growth factor, a prominent figure in Italian politics, and an active researcher and mentor until her death at the age of 103.
moreElie Wiesel – Speed read
Speed read
Elie Wiesel was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his work as the world’s leading spokesman on the Holocaust. Elie Wiesel Full name: Elie WieselBorn: 30 September 1928, Sighet, RomaniaDied: 2 July 2016, New York, NY, USADate awarded: 14 October 1986 Witness and messenger Jewish author, philosopher and humanist Elie Wiesel has made it his…
moreWole Soyinka – Podcast
Podcast
Nobel Prize Conversations ”In a number of my works, I am just narrating a tale for whoever is interested” In this podcast episode with literature laureate Wole Soyinka, conducted in November 2021, he talks about his photographic memory, his creative process and the question of who he writes literature for. His home of Nigeria figures…
morePerspectives: Life through a lens
Perspectives
As Ernst Ruska discovered, having an ingenious idea like the electron microscope can occur in the blink of an eye, but overcoming the finer details to create a successfully working instrument can take years. Two incredible circles closed for in December 1986, at the age of 80. The first was that Ruska was finally receiving…
moreSpeed read: Beyond the realm of our senses
Speed read
The concept that matter is made up of tiny atoms has been proposed for millennia, but we rely on our five senses to provide the ultimate truth. The 1986 Nobel Prize for Physics rewarded two radical leaps in microscope technology that finally allowed us to witness life at the atomic level. The light microscope, invented…
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