2007 Noble Prizes – the news so far
Today the Noble Prize for Chemistry was announced, that for Physiology and Medicine two days ago on 8th October and Physics yesterday, 9th October.
Gerhard Ertl, of the Fritz-Haber-Institut of the Max-Planck-Gesellschaft based in Berlin was awarded the Chemistry Prize”for his studies of chemical processes on solid surfaces”.
According to the press release
“Chemical reactions on catalytic surfaces play a vital role in many industrial operations, such as the production of artificial fertilizers. Surface chemistry can even explain the destruction of the ozone layer, as vital steps in the reaction actually take place on the surfaces of small crystals of ice in the stratosphere. The semiconductor industry is yet another area that depends on knowledge of surface chemistry……….
“Gerhard Ertl was one of the first to see the potential of these new techniques. Step by step he has created a methodology for surface chemistry by demonstrating how different experimental procedures can be used to provide a complete picture of a surface reaction. …
“Gerhard Ertl has founded an experimental school of thought by showing how reliable results can be attained in this difficult area of research. His insights have provided the scientific basis of modern surface chemistry: his method-ology is used in both academic research and the indust-rial development of chemical processes.
Albert Fert of the Université Paris-Sud; Unité Mixte de Physique CNRS/THALES Orsay, France and Peter Grünberg of the Forschungszentrum Jülich Jülich, Germany were awarded the Physics Prize “for the discovery of Giant Magnetoresistance” (GMR)
“This year’s physics prize is awarded for the technology that is used to read data on hard disks. It is thanks to this technology that it has been possible to miniaturize hard disks so radically in recent years. Sensitive read-out heads are needed to be able to read data from the compact hard disks used in laptops and some music players, for instance.In 1988 the Frenchman Albert Fert and the German Peter Grünberg each independently discovered a totally new physical effect – Giant Magnetoresistance or GMR. Very weak magnetic changes give rise to major differences in electrical resistance in a GMR system. A system of this kind is the perfect tool for reading data from hard disks when information registered magnetically has to be converted to electric current. Soon researchers and engineers began work to enable use of the effect in read-out heads. In 1997 the first read-out head based on the GMR effect was launched and this soon became the standard technology. Even the most recent read-out techniques of today are further
The Physiology and Medicine Prize was awarded jointly to three researchers
Mario R. Capecchi of the University of Utah Salt Lake City, UT, USA and Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and
Sir Martin J. Evans of Cardiff University, Cardiff, and
Oliver Smithies of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Chapel Hill, NC, USA
“for their discoveries of principles for introducing specific gene modifications in mice by the use of embryonic stem cells”
“This year’s Nobel Laureates have made a series of ground-breaking discoveries concerning embryonic stem cells and DNA recombination in mammals. Their discoveries led to the creation of an immensely powerful technology referred to as gene targeting in mice. It is now being applied to virtually all areas of biomedicine – from basic research to the development of new therapies. …..
“With gene targeting it is now possible to produce almost any type of DNA modification in the mouse genome, allowing scientists to establish the roles of individual genes in health and disease. Gene targeting has already produced more than five hundred different mouse models of human disorders, including cardiovascular and neuro-degenerative diseases, diabetes and cancer. ”
Mary
Add comment October 10th, 2007
