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Roster of 2021 Nobel Prize winners

23 Nov 2021

One of the driving forces behind all Noospherian activities is to popularize scientific research, inventions, and innovations among the general public. So we keep a close eye on leading headlines from the scientific world. Of course, we have prepared for you a handy roster of 2021 Nobel Prize winners.

Physics

Study of climate and complex physical systems

Laureates: Syukuro Manabe, Klaus Hasselmann, Giorgio Parisi

Countries: USA / Germany / Italy

The award website recognizes that all the laureates in this category excelled in their innovative contributions to the understanding, description, and prediction of the long-term behavior of complex physical systems.

In particular, Princeton University’s senior meteorologist Syukuro Manabe formed the basis of modern climate models. Mr. Manabe investigated the relationship between radiation balance and vertical transport of air masses through convection and proved that increased atmospheric temperatures are due to higher human emissions of carbon dioxide.

Chemistry

Study of innovative molecular construction tools

Laureates: Benjamin List, David MacMillan

Countries: Germany / USA

In addition to the known methods to control and accelerate chemical reactions using metals and enzymes as catalysts, List and Macmillan discovered a third type of catalysis using amino acids and other organic substances. When creating new molecules, asymmetric organocatalysis allows the bonds between non-visible substances to be controlled and accelerated in a way that achieves the desired results.

Physiology and Medicine

Discovery of touch and temperature receptors

Laureates: David Julius, Ardem Patapoutian

Country: USA

Our ability to sense cold, heat, and pressure as pain is fundamental to survival.

David Julius investigated how nerve cells are activated using the capsaicin found in chili peppers.

With this method, he assembled a library of millions of DNA fragments that provide responses to stimuli such as mechanical, heat, and touch.

Ardem Pataputyan conducted similar research with nerve cells using menthol. He was able to identify a receptor activated by cold.

Economics

Labor market research and cause-effect analysis

Laureates: David Card, Joshua Angrist, Guido Imbens

Country: USA

This year’s laureates studied the labor market through natural experiments, determining how minimum wages, immigration, and education affect the labour market. The right approach to interpreting the results of the experiments has revolutionized empirical research in this field.

For example, the researchers came to the interesting conclusion that quality schooling was more important for building a future career than had been socially believed.

Prizes in Literature and Peace

The Literature Prize and the Peace Prize were also awarded.

The Literature category saw Tanzanian writer Abdulrazak Gurnah awarded for his works. And the renowned Peace Prize went to journalists and activists Maria Ressa and Dmitry Muratov.

Let us recall that the Nobel Prize, founded in 1901, is one of the most prestigious international prizes awarded annually for outstanding scientific research, revolutionary inventions or major contributions to culture or the development of society.

We believe that in due course we will see among the Nobel laureates the participants and winners of our engineering startup competition Vernadsky Challenge, which gives enthusiastic young engineers, inventors and developers a chance to present their projects to the scientific worldб business community and the large public.