Nobel Prize

Interview with Abhijit Banerjee on 6 December 2019 during the Nobel Week in Stockholm, Sweden. Can you tell us about your childhood? Abhijit Banerjee: I grew up in a middle-class family in the city of Kolkata. I, just by accident more or less, happened to live right next door to one of the biggest slums…

Interview with James Peebles on 6 December 2019 during the Nobel Week in Stockholm, Sweden. What did you want to be when you were younger? James Peebles: Until I reached university, I was rather directionless. Never a rebel but rather a dreamer. I didn’t pay too much attention to classes, I am sure I annoyed…

Interview with Olga Tokarczuk on 6 December 2019 during the Nobel Week in Stockholm, Sweden. Your parents were both teachers. How did that influence you? Olga Tokarczuk: It was really a very good beginning for a writer. The books were very present in our house. I saw from the beginning how my parents are discussing…

Interview with Angus Deaton on 6 December 2015, during the Nobel Week in Stockholm, Sweden. What’s your story? Angus Deaton: What’s my story? What brought me to this scientific field? A lot of luck, a lot of accidents. I certainly didn’t start out to study economics. I think, you know, when I was in high…

Interview with Tasuku Honjo on 6 December 2018, during the Nobel Week in Stockholm, Sweden. How did you receive the news that you had been awarded the Nobel Prize? Tasuku Honjo: The first message I received from another foundation was by a telephone call. It was around 5 p.m. of October 1st. Actually people told…

Interview with Richard H. Thaler on 6 December 2017 during the Nobel Week in Stockholm, Sweden. Did you ever think that you would get the call from Stockholm? Richard H. Thaler: You are not really allowed to think about it, but one can always hope. A friend of mine told me that he had won…

Interview with Donna Strickland on 6 December 2018 during the Nobel Week in Stockholm, Sweden. How did you become interested in science? Donna Strickland: I have been asked that question about how I got interested in science quite a bit. I think it just is my education system. It’s hard to say, I mean, my…

Interview with Sir Gregory P. Winter on 6 December 2018 during the Nobel Week in Stockholm, Sweden. I’m Greg Winter. I’m the Nobel Laureate for Chemistry, one quarter share. When did you decide that you wanted to become a scientist? Sir Gregory P. Winter: I started to take an interest in chemistry because I think…

Interview with Esther Duflo on 6 December 2019 during the Nobel Week in Stockholm, Sweden. How did you become interested in economics? Esther Duflo: I grew up in a suburb of Paris, in a family with three children. My father is a mathematician and my mother is a pediatrician. Nothing really remarkable about my childhood…

Interview with Arthur B. McDonald on 6 December 2015, during the Nobel Week in Stockholm, Sweden. What’s your story? What brought you to science? Arthur B. McDonald: What brought me to science started back in high school when I had an interest in science, but really a more substantial interest in mathematics which was generated…