home Diagnosis and diseases Nobel size. What is the Nobel Prize and who is it given to? Nobel Prize amount

Nobel size. What is the Nobel Prize and who is it given to? Nobel Prize amount

Initially, the Nobel Prize was made up of the annual profits of the Alfred Nobel Foundation, which were distributed among the laureates in five areas. Consequently, the size of the Nobel Prize was different every year.

Now no one can say exactly how much the holdings of Alfred Nobel himself were valued, since family assets were closely mixed in various investments in different countries peace. After 5 years of work to establish the Nobel Fund, its volume was estimated at SEK 31,587,202.

In 1901, the monetary equivalent of the first Nobel Prize was 150,782 crowns. It is easy to calculate that a little more than 750,000 crowns were spent on just 5 award nominations, that is, a little more than 2.38 percent of all amounts at the disposal of the fund.

The real value of the Nobel Prize is also difficult to calculate due to changes in the purchasing power of the Swedish krona. However, the Nobel Committee provides approximate figures. Thus, 150,782 crowns awarded in 1901, at the 2011 exchange rate, correspond to 8,123,951 crowns, or more than 900 thousand euros.

From year to year, the part of the fund that went to pay bonuses changed. Apparently, this is due to the different profitability of the Alfred Nobel Foundation's investments, but it is impossible to say for sure, because the foundation began publishing financial statements only in 1975, after being exempt from taxes.

And the Swedish krona itself was valued differently in different years. It is believed that the most unsuccessful year for Nobel laureates was 1919. This year the award amounted to 133,127 crowns, which compared to the amount of 1901 does not look so bad. But it was a bad year for the Swedish krona, and in 2011 prices the 1919 premium is estimated at 2,254,284 kronor today. The biggest year for the Nobel Prize was 2001. Marking the beginning of the new millennium, members of the Nobel Committee decided to make the payment amounts fixed. And since 2001, the Nobel Prize has been worth 10 million Swedish kronor. However, the inflation of the Swedish krona has not been canceled. Therefore, it was most profitable in monetary terms to receive the Nobel Prize in 2001.

It is impossible to say exactly how much the Nobel Foundation manages today. According to 2007 estimates, this is 3.62 billion crowns. At the same time, the rules for distributing amounts between laureates have also changed. Since the Nobel Foundation regularly receives donations, since 1980 the amounts have been untied from the actual profits of the foundation and, for convenience, began to be adjusted to the inflation rate of the Swedish krona. In 1981, the premium amounted to 1 million crowns, in 1986 - 2 million, in 1989 - 3 million, in 1990 - 4 million, in 1991 - 6 million crowns. In the mid-1990s, the premium grew to 7 million, and by the end it reached 9 million. And from 2001 to this day, the premium amount is exactly 10 million Swedish kronor. It is possible that the amounts will be adjusted again in the future. If not, then getting a Nobel Prize will become less and less profitable every year.

Nobel Prize. Only the deaf have not heard of it. The most honorable reward for luminaries of science, culture and art. This is a kind of Oscar, but not for those who shine on the big screen, but for those who reveal the secrets of nature in a small room or write a literary masterpiece.

However, how much is this gratitude expressed today? In this article we will figure out how much money is given for a Nobel Prize, for example, in 2015 or 2016, and why previously the amount varied constantly, but now it has its own standard. And so, let's go.

History of the award

As is usually the case, we will start with history, in this case with the history of the birth of the award.

The award itself is named after the Swedish inventor, engineer and industrialist Alfred Bernhard Nobel. In addition to the fact that the monetary reward bears his name, money for this is also allocated from his fund.

The ceremony dates back to 1901; since then, a special commission has been identifying the best in the field of medicine, chemistry, physiology, literature, physics and peace protection. Since 1969, economics has been added to this list. It is not known whether we should expect another expansion of the list, but in any case, there is no official discussion on this matter.

Reward Appearance

Here you can almost retell the legend about this incident. Its appearance is usually associated with one tragic situation that occurred in the life of Alfred Nobel.

As you know, he is considered the inventor of dynamite, and so, in 1889, due to negligence, his brother Ludwig died suddenly, after which a careless journalist mentioned Alfred as a merchant of death. Of course, he didn’t like it, and he absolutely did not want to die, leaving such a terrible memory of himself.

Therefore, he decided to cleanse his karma, so to speak, and in his will he asked to sell all his, by the way, not a small property, and with the money received to buy securities, with the help of which the fund was founded. The scientist ordered that the interest remaining after the initial capital be distributed among the five best specialists in their field (I have already described the nominations above).

Reward size

Well, here we come to the main question. At the very beginning, it was difficult to determine the exact amount of payments, since it directly depended on the accumulated interest. However, it is safe to say that the first payment was equal to 150 thousand Swiss crowns.

Since then, its amount has only increased and reached a million and a half dollars. However, as it turned out, in Lately the percentage was not enough to hold the ceremony, maintain the administration and the award itself. That is, the balance went into minus. And if the fund goes bankrupt, then there will be no bonus.

Therefore, it was decided to fix the payment amount at $1.1 million, so that the bonus would be paid for as long as possible, and perhaps indefinitely. It’s easy to calculate how much it is in rubles.

Did you know that thanks to Nobel’s relatives, the prize might not have happened at all. Since they were very unhappy with the inventor’s last wish, they decided to challenge his will through the court and divide all the property that he owned among themselves. Fortunately for future scientists and cultural figures, they did not succeed, although after the proceedings each received 2 million crowns.

That's how it is, friends. Let us not forget this glorious man, who passed away not as a merchant of death, but as a worthy man and philanthropist. We wish the Foundation many years of existence, so that not a single outstanding person, including in Russia, in his business is deprived of a prize for success.

All the best to you!

Now no one can say exactly how much the holdings of Alfred Nobel himself were valued, since family assets were closely mixed in various investments in different countries of the world. After 5 years of work to establish the Nobel Fund, its volume was estimated at SEK 31,587,202.

The Nobel Prize is the most prestigious scientific award in the world. Scientists dream of getting it different areas. Every educated person should know about the latest achievements of mankind, marked by this award. How did it appear and in what areas of science can it be obtained?

What it is?

The annual award is named after the Swedish engineer, industrialist and inventor. Alfred Bernhard Nobel was its founder. In addition, he owns a fund from which money is allocated for the implementation. The history of the Nobel Prize begins in the twentieth century. Since 1901, a special commission has determined the winners in categories such as physics, medicine and physiology, chemistry, literature and peace protection. In 1969, a new science was added to the list. Since then, the commission has also recognized the best specialist in the field of economics. Perhaps new categories will appear in the future, but this moment There is no discussion of such an event.

How did the award come about?

The history of the Nobel Prize is very interesting. It is connected with a very dark incident in the life of its founder. As you know, Alfred Nobel was When his brother Ludwig died in 1889, a journalist from one of the newspapers confused and indicated Alfred in his obituary. The text called him a merchant of death. Alfred Nobel was horrified by the prospect of remaining in the memory of mankind in such a capacity. He began to think about what he could leave behind, and composed a special will. With his help, he hoped to rectify the dynamite situation.

Alfred Nobel's will

The significant text was invented and signed in 1895 in Paris. According to the will, the executors must exchange all property remaining after it for securities on the basis of which a fund will be created. Interest from the resulting capital will go towards bonuses for scientists who have brought the greatest benefit to humanity. They must be divided into five parts: one for the one who discovered or invented something new in the field of physics, the other for the most talented chemist, the third is intended the best doctor, the fourth - for the creator of the main literary work of the year, dedicated to human ideals, and the fifth - for the one who can help establish peace on the planet, fighting for the reduction of armies, the destruction of slavery and the friendship of peoples. According to the will, Nobel Prize laureates in the first two categories are determined by the Swedish Sciences. For medicine, the choice is made by the Royal Karolinska Institute, the literary one is chosen by the Swedish Academy, and the latter is chosen by a committee of five people. They are elected by the Norwegian Storting.

Award sizes

Since the bonus is determined as a percentage of the capital invested by Nobil, its size varies. Initially, it was provided in crowns, the first amount was 150 thousand. Now the size of the Nobel Prize has increased significantly and is awarded in US dollars. IN last years it is about a million. As soon as the money in the fund runs out, the bonus will disappear. The Nobel prize initially amounted to almost 32 million Swedish kronor, so, taking into account successful investments, it has only increased over the years. However, recently interest has not made it possible to achieve a positive budget - the costs of the prize, the ceremony and the maintenance of the administration are too high. Several years ago, it was decided to reduce the size of the Nobel Prize in order to ensure the stability of the fund in the future. The administration is doing everything possible to maintain it as long as possible.

Family scandal

If history had gone differently, this prize might never have been born. The Nobel prize turned out to be so large that relatives could not come to terms with its loss. After the death of the inventor, one of the other began legal proceedings in which attempts were made to challenge the will. Nobel owned a mansion in Nice and a house in Paris, laboratories in Russia, Finland, Italy, Germany and England, many workshops and factories. All the heirs wanted to divide it among themselves. However, the Storting decided to recognize the will. The deceased's attorneys sold his property, and the timing and amount of the Nobel Prize were approved. The relatives received the sum of two million.

Foundation establishment

The Nobel Prize, whose history began with a scandal, was first awarded only when the Royal Council met on June 29, 1900, at which all the details were considered and the official fund was approved. Part of the money was used to purchase the building in which it is located. The first award ceremony was held in December 1901. The size of the Nobel Prize of one hundred and fifty thousand was the first and most modest. In 1968, the Swedish Bank proposed to nominate specialists in the field of economics. for this area are selected by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. It was first awarded in 1969.

Rules for the ceremony

The will indicated only the size of the Nobel Prize and the sciences for which scientists should be recognized for their achievements. The rules of conduct and selection had to be drawn up by the fund administration. They were developed at the beginning of the twentieth century and have remained virtually unchanged since then. According to the rules, the prize can be awarded to several people, but there cannot be more than three. If the nominee died at the time of the December ceremony but was alive when nominations were announced in October, he will receive the amount posthumously. The Nobel Foundation does not award prizes, entrusting this to special committees for each area. Their members can seek help from scientists from different scientific fields. The Prize in Literature is given to the best specialists linguistics. The laureate in the peace category is chosen with the consultation of scientists in the field of philosophy, law, political science, history, and is invited for discussion. Sometimes a specialist can personally propose a candidate. This right belongs to the laureates of previous years and members of the Swedish Academies of Sciences. All nominations are approved by February 1 of the year in which the award will be held. Until September, each proposal is evaluated and discussed. Thousands of specialists may be involved in the process. When preparations are complete, the committees send approved nominations to the official Nobel Prize scientists, who will make the final decision. In the field of physics, chemistry and economic sciences, the main ones are groups of representatives of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, each of which has twenty-five people. Fifty participants from the Karolinska Institutet practice medicine. Literature - eighteen scientists from the Swedish Academy. The Peace Prize is awarded by the Norwegian Nobel Committee. In October, the last statement is made, which is announced at a press conference in Stockholm to the whole world, accompanied by comments on the reasons for each decision. By December 10, the laureates and their families are invited to a ceremony.

One of the key events in the social and intellectual life of Sweden is Nobel Day - the annual presentation of the Nobel Prize, which takes place on December 10 in Stockholm's Studhuset (city hall).

These awards are internationally recognized as the most honorable civilian distinction. The Nobel Prizes in Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, Literature and Economics are presented to the laureates by His Majesty the King of Sweden at a ceremony held on the anniversary of the death of Alfred Nobel (December 10, 1896).

Each laureate receives gold medal with a picture of Nobel and a diploma. Currently, the Nobel Prize is worth 10 million Swedish kronor (about 1.05 million euros or $1.5 million).

The Prizes in Chemistry, Physics and Economics are awarded by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, the Prizes in Medicine are awarded by the Karolinska Institutet, and the Swedish Academy awards the Prize in Literature. The only non-Swedish prize, the Peace Prize, is awarded in Oslo by the Norwegian Nobel Committee.

By the way, Nobel signed the last version of the famous will almost a year before his death - on November 27, 1895 in Paris. It was announced in January 1897: "Everything that is movable and real estate must be converted by my executors into liquid assets, and the capital thus collected placed in a reliable bank. The income from the investments should belong to a fund, which will distribute them annually in the form of bonuses to those who, during the previous year, have brought the greatest benefit to humanity ... The specified interest must be divided into five equal parts, which are intended: one part - to the one who makes the most important discovery or invention in the field of physics; the other - to the one who makes the most important discovery or improvement in the field of chemistry; the third - to the one who makes the most important discovery in the field of physiology or medicine; fourth - to the one who creates the most outstanding literary work idealistic direction; fifth - to the one who has made the most significant contribution to the unity of nations, the abolition of slavery or the reduction of the size of existing armies and the promotion of peace congresses ... It is my special desire that, in awarding prizes, no consideration will be given to the nationality of the candidates ... "

Alfred Bernhard Nobel, Swedish inventor, industrial magnate, linguist, philosopher and humanist, was born in 1833 in Stockholm into a Swedish family. In 1842, his family moved to St. Petersburg, the capital of what was then Russia. Nobel received an excellent education of international class. He read, wrote, spoke and understood equally well in 5 European languages: Swedish, Russian, English, French and German. Nobel went down in history as the inventor of dynamite, a substance that played an important role in the development of world industry.

During his life, Alfred Nobel became the owner of 355 patents, which formed the basis of about 90 enterprises in 20 countries. His brothers Robert and Louis, who worked in Russia and later in Baku in the oil fields, contributed to his fortune. Alfred Nobel bequeathed $4 million (currently equivalent to $173 million) to be used as prizes in the fields of physics, chemistry, physiology and medicine. These areas were close to him, and in them he expected the greatest progress.

He did not bequeath prizes to architects, musicians and composers. Literature prizes also reflect Nobel's personal interests. In his youth he wrote poetry and poems in English and Swedish, and throughout his life he was a voracious reader in all languages accessible to him.The prizes in the field of science and literature were to be awarded in Sweden, and the peace prize - in Norway. The history of the Nobel Prize, the fund of which amounted to 31 million crowns, began with this will.

A year later, on December 10, 1896, Alfred Nobel died in Italy from a stroke. Later this date will be declared Nobel Day. After opening the will, it turned out that almost all of Nobel’s fortune was inaccessible to his relatives, who were counting on this money.

Even the Swedish king Oscar II showed dissatisfaction, who did not want finances to leave the country, even in the form of awards for world achievements. Objective bureaucratic difficulties also arose. The practical implementation of Nobel's will turned out to be very difficult, and under certain conditions the prizes might not take place.

But soon all obstacles were overcome, and in June 1898, Nobel’s relatives signed an agreement to renounce further claims to the capital. The main provisions related to the awarding of prizes also received approval from the Swedish government. In 1900, the Charter of the Nobel Foundation and the rules regulating the activities of the Nobel structures being created were signed by the King of Sweden. The prize was first awarded in 1901.

The Nobel Prize became the most prestigious award in the field of physics, chemistry, physiology, medicine, economics, literature and activities to establish peace between nations. It is paid once a year from the funds of the fund created according to the will of Alfred Nobel. More than 600 people became Nobel Prize laureates during the 20th century.

Awarding awards does not always meet with universal approval. In 1953, Sir Winston Churchill received a literary prize, while the famous American writer Graham Greene never received it.

Each country has its own national heroes and often the award or non-award results in disappointment. The famous Swedish writer Astrid Lindgren was never nominated for the prize, and the Indian Mahatma Gandhi never won the prize. But Henry Kissinger won the Peace Prize in 1973 - a year after vietnam war. There are known cases of refusal of the prize for reasons of principle: the Frenchman Jean Paul Sartre refused the literary prize in 1964, and the Vietnamese Le Dick Tho did not want to share it with Kissinger.

The Nobel Prizes are unique awards and are particularly prestigious. The question is often asked why these awards attract so much more attention than any other awards of the 20th century. One reason may be the fact that they were introduced in a timely manner and that they marked some fundamental historical changes in society. Alfred Nobel was a true internationalist, and from the very foundation of the prizes named after him, the international nature of the awards made a special impression. Strict rules for the selection of laureates, which began to apply since the establishment of the prizes, also played a role in recognizing the importance of the awards in question. As soon as the election of the current year's laureates ends in December, preparations begin for the election of next year's laureates. Such year-round activities, in which so many intellectuals from all over the world participate, orient scientists, writers and public figures for work in the interests of social development, which precedes the awarding of prizes for “contribution to human progress.”

The first Nobel banquet took place on December 10, 1901, simultaneously with the first presentation of the prize. Currently, the banquet is held in the Blue Hall of the City Hall. 1300-1400 people are invited to the banquet. Dress code: tailcoats and evening dresses. Chefs from the Town Hall Cellar (a restaurant at the Town Hall) and culinary specialists who have ever received the title of Chef of the Year take part in the development of the menu. In September, three menu options are tasted by members of the Nobel Committee, who decide what will be served “at Nobel’s table.” The only dessert that is always known is ice cream, but until the evening of December 10, no one except a narrow circle of initiates knows what kind.

For the Nobel banquet, specially designed dinnerware and tablecloths are used. A portrait of Nobel is woven on the corner of each tablecloth and napkin. Dishes self made: along the edge of the plate there is a stripe of three colors of the Swedish Empire - blue, green and gold. The stem of the crystal wine glass is decorated in the same color scheme. The banquet service was commissioned for $1.6 million for the 90th anniversary of the Nobel Prizes in 1991. It consists of 6,750 glasses, 9,450 knives and forks, 9,550 plates and one tea cup. The last one is for Princess Liliana, who doesn't drink coffee. The cup is stored in a special beautiful wooden box with the princess's monogram. The saucer from the cup was stolen.

The tables in the hall are arranged with mathematical precision, and the hall is decorated with 23,000 flowers sent from San Remo. All movements of the waiters are strictly timed down to the second. For example, the ceremonial bringing in of ice cream takes exactly three minutes from the moment the first waiter appears with a tray at the door until the last of them stands at his table. Other dishes take two minutes to serve.

Exactly at 19 o'clock on December 210, the guests of honor, led by the king and queen, descend the stairs to the Blue Hall, where all the invitees are already sitting. The Swedish king is holding a Nobel laureate on his arm, and if she doesn’t have one, his wife Nobel laureate in physics. The first to toast is to His Majesty, the second to the memory of Alfred Nobel. After this, the secret of the menu is revealed. The menu is printed in small print on cards included with each location and features Alfred Nobel's profile in gold embossing. There is music throughout the dinner - very famous musicians are invited, including Rostropovich and Magnus Lindgren in 2003.

The banquet ends with the delivery of ice cream, crowned with a chocolate monogram “N” like a crown. At 22:15 the Swedish king gives the signal for the start of dancing in the Golden Hall of the Town Hall. At 1:30 the guests leave.

Absolutely all dishes from the menu, from 1901 onwards, can be ordered at the Stockholm Town Hall restaurant. This lunch costs a little less than $200. Every year they are ordered by 20 thousand visitors, and traditionally the most popular menu is the last Nobel banquet.

The Nobel concert is one of the three components of the Nobel week, along with the presentation of prizes and the Nobel dinner. It is considered one of the main musical events of the year in Europe and the main musical event of the year in the Scandinavian countries. The most prominent classical musicians of our time take part in it. In fact, there are two Nobel concerts: one is held on December 8 of each year in Stockholm, the second in Oslo at the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony. The Nobel concert is broadcast on several international television channels on December 31 of each year.Quote from the message Vladimir_Grinchuv

Nobel Prize

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