Nobel´s will

1. Nobel´s will "…The capital shall be invested by my executors in safe securities and shall constitute a fund, the interest on which shall be annually distributed in the form of prizes to those who, during the preceding year, shall have conferred the greatest benefit on mankind ... ; one part to the person who shall have made the most important discovery within the domain of physiology or medicine; ... The prizes for ... shall be awarded by ... that for physiology or medicine by the Carolinska Institute in Stockholm; ... ''

2. Prizes in Physiology or Medicine awarded by Karolinska Institutet Nobel Assembly – Voting body. 50 professors at KI Nobel committee – Working party. 5+10+3.

3. Time aspect ”those who, during the preceding year, shall have conferred the greatest benefit on mankind..” Reinterpreted to mean roughly: those whose discoveries have been shown during the preceeding year have been clearly shownto be of benefit to mankind and to be great… Not too old

4. …..the most important discovery within the domain of physiology or medicine…… In physics it is discovery and invention while in chemistry it is discovery or improvement. Thus, the element of discovery particularly important a selection criterion for the Physiology/Medicine prize.

5. The process of finding prize winner(s) starts with nominations • Nobel Assembly • RSAS Medical class • Laureates Physiology or Medicine • Nobel Committee • Med Prof in SE, DK, NO, FI, IC • Minimally 6 international faculties • Other suitable

6. CAREFUL INVESTIGATION ON PRIZEWORTHINESS • Investigations – often over several years. Based on written documents that are kept secret for 50 years. • Focus on: • Has there been a real discovery? Is it true? • Is it important? • Who made it? • How much of a paradigm shift is involved? • The thoroughness of the investigation best guarantee for the prestige of the prize.

7. There are many more extremely good scientists than can be given the Nobel prize. The important thing in selecting winners is that each one selected is worthy.

8. The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1983 "for her discovery of mobile genetic elements" Barbara McClintock USA Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Cold Spring Harbor, NY, USA b. 1902d. 1992 Very rarely prizes are given to a person who worked completely alone

9. The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1971 The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1999 "for his discoveries concerning the mechanisms of the action of hormones" "for the discovery that proteins have intrinsic signals that govern their transport and localization in the cell" Earl W. Sutherland, Jr. Günter Blobel USA USA Vanderbilt University Nashville, TN, USA Rockefeller University New York, NY, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute b. 1915d. 1974 b. 1936(in Waltersdorf/Silesia, Germany) More often a single individual can be credited despite the fact that he/she has worked with many collaborators

10. The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2002 The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1994 "for their discoveries concerning 'genetic regulation of organ development and programmed cell death'" "for their discovery of G-proteins and the role of these proteins in signal transduction in cells" Alfred G. Gilman Sydney Brenner H. Robert Horvitz Martin Rodbell John E. Sulston     1/2 of the prize     1/2 of the prize     1/3 of the prize     1/3 of the prize     1/3 of the prize USA USA United Kingdom USA United Kingdom University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas Dallas, TX, USA National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences Research Triangle Park, NC, USA The Molecular Sciences Institute Berkeley, CA, USA Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Cambridge, MA, USA The Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute Cambridge, United Kingdom b. 1941 b. 1925d. 1998 b. 1927(in Union of South Africa) b. 1947 b. 1942 Sometimes prizes are awarded to consequtive discoveries

11. The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1979 The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2003 "for the development of computer assisted tomography" "for their discoveries concerning magnetic resonance imaging" Allan M. Cormack Paul C. Lauterbur Godfrey N. Hounsfield Sir Peter Mansfield     1/2 of the prize     1/2 of the prize     1/2 of the prize     1/2 of the prize USA USA United Kingdom United Kingdom Tufts University Medford, MA, USA University of Illinois Urbana, IL, USA Central Research Laboratories, EMI London, United Kingdom University of Nottingham, School of Physics and Astronomy Nottingham, United Kingdom b. 1924(in Johannesburg, South Africa)d. 1998 b. 1919d. 2004 b. 1929 b. 1933 Sometimes prizes are awarded for the discovery of a technique with major implications

12. The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1989 The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1985 "for their discovery of the cellular origin of retroviral oncogenes" "for their discoveries concerning the regulation of cholesterol metabolism" J. Michael Bishop Harold E. Varmus Michael S. Brown Joseph L. Goldstein     1/2 of the prize     1/2 of the prize     1/2 of the prize     1/2 of the prize USA USA USA USA University of California School of Medicine San Francisco, CA, USA University of California School of Medicine San Francisco, CA, USA University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas Dallas, TX, USA University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas Dallas, TX, USA b. 1936 b. 1939 b. 1941 b. 1940 Quite commonly prizes are awarded to a pair of scientists working closely together

13. The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1991 The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1992 "for their discoveries concerning the function of single ion channels in cells" "for their discoveries concerning reversible protein phosphorylation as a biological regulatory mechanism" Erwin Neher Edmond H. Fischer Bert Sakmann Edwin G. Krebs     1/2 of the prize     1/2 of the prize     1/2 of the prize     1/2 of the prize Switzerland and USA Federal Republic of Germany Federal Republic of Germany USA University of Washington Seattle, WA, USA Max-Planck-Institut für Biophysikalische Chemie Goettingen, Federal Republic of Germany Max-Planck-Institut für medizinische Forschung Heidelberg, Federal Republic of Germany University of Washington Seattle, WA, USA b. 1920(in Shanghai, China) b. 1918 b. 1944 b. 1942 Quite commonly prizes are awarded to a pair of scientists working closely together (4 examples in 8 years)

14. In the past 25 years there are 11 Nobel prizes awarded to such collaborative efforts between two scientists. This suggests that such collaborations can be very stimulating for creativity.

15. Distribution of prizes last 25 years

16. Time lag is not widely understood - ”..as far as the Nobel Prize as a mirror of twentieth-century science and culture is concerned, there is a time lapse. The Nobel Prizes of today therefore reflect the development of science in the 1970s and 1980s. ” - interestingly enough, the demand is heard every year ..that the Nobel Prize should reflect the changed view of today rather than the reality of several decades ago. In this criticism we can perhaps see a sign of the status of the Nobel Prize as "a desperately needed symbol of authority and coherence in an age when all standards are under attack," as Dr. Burton Feldman put it. 2004 Opening Addressby Professor Bengt Samuelsson

17. thoughts on creativity Ordinary creativity– gifted individuals can be identified using psychometeric methods, and their abilities nurtured or enhanced in several ways. Extraordinary creativity – not a dimensional trait that can be easily identified. Individuals exhibiting it can be allowed to develop their abilities in creative environments, but formal training is difficult. Nancy Andreasen. The Creating Brain

18. Creative environments • Freedom, novelty and a sense of being at the edge (living in exciting times) • A critical mass of creative people • A competetive atmosphere that is free and fair • Mentors and patrons • Economic prosperity Nancy Andreasen. The Creating Brain