Who stands a chance of winning the 2015 Nobel Prize?
Nobel Prize 2015
The Nobel Prize is regarded by the scientific community as the most esteemed science award. This series celebrates the 2015 Nobel Prizes, covering a range of topics such as how the Nobel Prize changes a Laureate's life, how Nobel Laureates spend their prize money, the changes required in the Nobel Prize, Nobel-related initiatives that reach out to the larger scientific community, winners of the Nobel Prize for 2015, and more.
This is the most exciting time of the year! As the date of the Nobel Prize announcements is drawing closer, speculations are rife about who is likely to win the title of Nobel Laureate in physics, chemistry, medicine or physiology, and economics.
It has been noted that some of the winners of the Lasker Awards and the Wolf Prize have gone on to win the Nobel Prize in the past. Hence, many in the scholarly circle believe that these winners stand a chance of becoming Nobel Laureates. Another source of predictions for Nobel winners is the Thomson Reuters’ list of Citation Laureates.
Thomson Reuters released its annual list of researchers called Thomson Reuters Citation Laureates on September 24. The researchers who make it to this list are those “whose work has achieved quantifiable esteem and impact in the scientific community, at a level far beyond the norm” and “signals that they are ‘of Nobel class’ and likely to earn the Nobel someday.” Reportedly, since it began in 2002, the Thomson Reuters forecast has picked 37 researchers who have gone on to win, although not necessarily in the year in which the list was released.
The Thomson Reuters Citation Laureates list includes the following researchers:
Chemistry
For founding the field of bioorthogonal chemistry, which enables observation of biochemical reactions in living systems without altering them, affording novel insights into cellular processes associated with many conditions, including cancer
For developing the CRISPR/CAS-9 method for genome editing, a “find and replace” utility which helps identify potential drug targets and may even be used to treat specific genetic diseases in humans
For laying the scientific foundation for the development of the ubiquitous lithium-ion battery, which powers cell phones, tablets, and other portable consumer electronics, as well as implantable medical devices such as cardiac pacemakers
Medicine
For revealing the complex relationship between humans and intestinal microbiota and how this interaction affects nutrition, obesity, and overall health
For elucidating the “unfolded protein response,” a cellular “quality-control” system whose workings have provided insights into many diseases and possible treatments
For advances in the understanding of T cells and their function in autoimmune diseases, allergy, inflammation, and other processes
Physics
For pioneering the field of attophysics, which uses lasers to detect molecular phenomenon taking place in a quintillionth of a second, with potential applications in engineering and medicine
For creating the first fermionic condensate at ultra-low temperatures, work that might be harnessed in precision measurement, quantum computing, and superconductors
For inventing power-generating nano-systems that convert mechanical energy into electricity to power sensors and other tiny devices; applications include clothing that converts physical movement into energy
Economics
For advancing, through virtuoso empirical microeconometric studies, our understanding of policy decisions impacting labor markets and consumer demand, and in particular, how families are affected by adverse economic conditions
For extending the application of field experiments in economics, opening a new understanding over a range of subjects by designing, for example, experiments to gauge whether subjects’ behavior in natural settings is consistent with economic theory
For explaining the range and limits of social policy decisions and prediction subject to partial knowledge and social effects—examining how people choose between alternatives when only one outcome will ever be known; for example, in criminal sentencing and medical treatment
All the best to all of the researchers!
The Nobel Prize announcements will begin on October 5. Watch this space to know who won the prestigious prizes.
Published on: Oct 03, 2015
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