Nobel Prizes in Science & Medicine Questions & Answers
The Nobel Prizes were instituted under the 1895 will of Swedish industrialist Alfred Nobel, who allocated 31 million Swedish kronor to establish international accolades administered by the Nobel Foundation. First presented on December 10, 1901, the scientific honors comprise three distinct disciplines: Physics and Chemistry, adjudicated by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, and Physiology or Medicine, awarded by the Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institutet. In 1901, Wilhelm Röntgen received the inaugural Physics prize for discovering X-rays, Jacobus Henricus van 't Hoff claimed Chemistry for osmotic pressure laws, and Emil von Behring won Physiology for serum antitoxin therapy against diphtheria. Marie Curie achieved singular distinction by winning in two scientific branches: Physics in 1903 alongside Pierre Curie and Henri Becquerel for spontaneous radioactivity research, and Chemistry in 1911 for discovering radium and polonium. John Bardeen remains the sole laureate awarded two Physics prizes, recognized in 1956 for the semiconductor transistor and in 1972 for the BCS theory of superconductivity. Indian laureates include Sir C. V. Raman in 1930 for inelastic light scattering, Har Gobind Khorana in 1968 for deciphering the genetic code, and Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar in 1983 for astrophysical processes determining the 1.44 solar mass limit of white dwarfs.
High-yield conceptual summaries for competitive exams and rapid revision.
Alfred Nobel executed his final will on November 27, 1895 in Paris, bequeathing 94 percent of his estate to establish annual international prizes.
The Nobel Foundation was founded as a private institution on June 29, 1900 to administer the endowment assets and coordinate award presentations.
The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences confers Nobel Prizes in Physics and Chemistry, while the Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institutet awards Physiology or Medicine.
The first Nobel ceremonies were conducted on December 10, 1901, marking the fifth anniversary of Alfred Nobel's death in San Remo, Italy.
Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen received the inaugural 1901 Nobel Prize in Physics for his discovery of electromagnetic X-radiation in 1895.
Jacobus Henricus van 't Hoff won the 1901 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for establishing laws of chemical dynamics and osmotic pressure in solutions.
Emil Adolf von Behring earned the 1901 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for developing serum therapy against diphtheria and tetanus.
Marie Curie was the first woman to win a Nobel Prize and remains the only person honored in two distinct scientific disciplines: Physics (1903) and Chemistry (1911).
John Bardeen represents the only scientist awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics twice: in 1956 for the point-contact transistor and in 1972 for BCS theory.
Frederick Sanger secured two Nobel Prizes in Chemistry: in 1958 for determining insulin protein structure and in 1980 for dideoxy DNA sequencing methods.
Sir Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman received the 1930 Nobel Prize in Physics for discovering the Raman effect of inelastic photon scattering in liquids.
Har Gobind Khorana shared the 1968 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with Marshall Nirenberg and Robert Holley for cracking the genetic code.
Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar shared the 1983 Nobel Prize in Physics with William Fowler for theoretical studies on stellar structure and the Chandrasekhar limit.
Under Nobel Foundation statutes revised in 1974, a prize cannot be awarded posthumously unless death occurs following the public announcement.
A single Nobel Prize category may not be divided among more than three individuals, although organizations remain eligible for the Peace Prize.
Who was the first Asian and Indian to be awarded a Nobel Prize, winning the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1913 for Gitanjali?
Verified Explanation
Rabindranath Tagore won the 1913 Nobel Prize in Literature "because of his profoundly sensitive, fresh and beautiful verse", becoming Asia's first Nobel laureate.
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easyNobel Prizes
Who was the first Indian and first Asian to be awarded the Nobel Prize, winning the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1913 for his poetry collection 'Gitanjali'?
Verified Explanation
Rabindranath Tagore was awarded the 1913 Nobel Prize in Literature 'because of his profoundly sensitive, fresh and beautiful verse' in Gitanjali (Song Offerings).
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easyNobel Prizes
Who was the first Asian and first Indian laureate to be awarded the Nobel Prize, winning the 1913 Nobel Prize in Literature for his spiritual poetry collection 'Gitanjali'
Verified Explanation
Rabindranath Tagore won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1913 'because of his profoundly sensitive, fresh and beautiful verse', becoming the first non-European literature laureate.
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hardNobel Prizes
Who is the only physicist in history to win the Nobel Prize in Physics twice (1956 for the invention of the transistor and 1972 for the BCS theory of superconductivity)?
Verified Explanation
American physicist John Bardeen won the 1956 Nobel Prize in Physics (with Shockley and Brattain) and the 1972 Nobel Prize in Physics (with Cooper and Schrieffer), the only double Physics laureate.
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hardNobel Prizes
Who is the only individual in history to win two completely unshared (sole) Nobel Prizes (the 1954 Nobel Prize in Chemistry and the 1962 Nobel Peace Prize)?
Verified Explanation
American chemist and peace activist Linus Pauling was the sole recipient of the 1954 Nobel Prize in Chemistry (nature of the chemical bond) and the 1962 Nobel Peace Prize (anti-nuclear testing activism).
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mediumFirst in India (Male)
Who was the first Indian (and first non-European) to be awarded the Nobel Prize, winning the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1913 for 'Gitanjali'?
Verified Explanation
Rabindranath Tagore was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1913 'because of his profoundly sensitive, fresh and beautiful verse' in the English collection Song Offerings (Gitanjali).
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mediumFirst in India (Male)
Who was the first Indian scientist to be awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1930 for his discovery of the inelastic scattering of light?
Verified Explanation
Sir Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman discovered that when light traverses a transparent material, some deflected light changes wavelength (Raman Effect) in 1928, winning the Nobel Prize in 1930.
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easyNobel Laureates
Who was the first woman to win a Nobel Prize, and the only person in history to win Nobel Prizes in two different scientific disciplines (Physics in 1903 and Chemistry in 1911)?
Verified Explanation
Marie Skłodowska-Curie won the 1903 Nobel Prize in Physics (with Pierre Curie and Henri Becquerel for radiation research) and the 1911 Nobel Prize in Chemistry (for discovering radium and polonium).
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easyNobel Laureates
For which groundbreaking theoretical explanation did Albert Einstein receive the 1921 Nobel Prize in Physics?
Verified Explanation
Albert Einstein was awarded the 1921 Nobel Prize in Physics 'for his services to Theoretical Physics, and especially for his discovery of the law of the photoelectric effect', which established light quanta (photons).
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easyNobel Laureates
Which Indian physicist won the 1930 Nobel Prize in Physics for discovering the inelastic scattering of light by molecular mediums?
Verified Explanation
Sir C.V. Raman discovered the Raman Effect in Kolkata on February 28, 1928 (celebrated across India as National Science Day), winning the 1930 Nobel Prize in Physics as the first Asian science laureate.