Alfred Nobel - His Life and Work
Alfred Nobel was born in Stockholm on October 21, 1833. His father Immanuel Nobel was an engineer and inventor who built bridges and buildings in Stockholm. In connection with his construction work Immanuel Nobel also experimented with different techniques for blasting rocks.
Alfred's mother, born Andriette Ahlsell, came from a wealthy family. Due to misfortunes in his construction work caused by the loss of some barges of building material, Immanuel Nobel was forced into bankruptcy the same year Alfred Nobel was born. In 1837 Immanuel Nobel left Stockholm and his family to start a new career in Finland and in Russia. To support the family, Andriette Nobel started a grocery store which provided a modest income. Meanwhile Immanuel Nobel was successful in his new enterprise in St. Petersburg, Russia. He started a mechanical workshop which provided equipment for the Russian army and he also convinced the Tsar and his generals that naval mines could be used to block enemy naval ships from threatening the city.
The naval mines designed by Immanuel Nobel were simple devices consisting of submerged wooden casks filled with gunpowder. Anchored below the surface of the Gulf of Finland, they effectively deterred the British Royal Navy from moving into firing range of St. Petersburg during the Crimean war (1853-1856). Immanuel Nobel was also a pioneer in arms manufacture and in designing steam engines.
Successful in his industrial and business ventures, Immanuel Nobel was able, in 1842, to bring his family to St. Petersburg. There, his sons were given a first class education by private teachers. The training included natural sciences, languages and literature. By the age of 17 Alfred Nobel was fluent in Swedish, Russian, French, English and German. His primary interests were in English literature and poetry as well as in chemistry and physics. Alfred's father, who wanted his sons to join his enterprise as engineers, disliked Alfred's interest in poetry and found his son rather introverted. In order to widen Alfred's horizons his father sent him abroad for further training in chemical engineering. During a two year period Alfred Nobel visited Sweden, Germany, France and the United States. In Paris, the city he came to like best, he worked in the private laboratory of Professor T. J. Pelouze, a famous chemist. There he met the young Italian chemist Ascanio Sobrero who, three years earlier, had invented nitroglycerine, a highly explosive liquid.
Albert Einstein is looked at as one of the most magnificent scientific thinkers throughout history. His theories on the nature and dimensions of time and space immensely changed the way people thought of the physical world and established many of the major fundamental foundations for a tremendous amount of the our scientific discoveries and inventions in the 21st century.
This 2006 article by Ed John Merriman and Jay Winter, titled “The Nobel Prize,” is about the history and importance of the Nobel Prize, and how it works. To understand the history of the Nobel Prize, we must start with the death of the Alfred Nobel. Alfred Nobel was known for his work with chemicals and explosives, and was actually the inventor of dynamite. Upon providing dynamite to the world, solely for the use of mining, he found his creation misused for violence, a new war tool that was used to kill thousands of people. In regret for bringing all this destruction, he decided to reserve all his money, to prize others who made notable differences in the world, specifically in the fields of physics, medicine, literature, chemistry, and peace (as stated in Alfred Nobel’s will). The economics prize would later be added and funded by the Bank of Sweden, in 1968. Once Nobel died on December 10th, 1896, his will was found and executed by his assistant Ragnar Sohlman. Sohlman then created the Nobel Foundation, whose purpose was to administer the capital, from Nobel’s will, for the prizes. Even though the Nobel Foundation is given the power of financing, they are not in charge of choosing winners, or laureates. Laureates are chosen by Nobel Committees, one for each prize. These committees receive thousands of nominations yearly, and narrow the candidates down to a little over a 100, per category. These committees then consult with field experts, to determine not only the quality of work, but also its impact on the field of study. As October comes, the candidates are narrowed down to a few, and a simple majority vote takes place, to choose the recipient. The decisions are then made public, and the recipient earns the prize at the ceremon...
Alfred Nobel was born in Stockholm on October 21, 1833. By the age of 17 he was fluent in Swedish, Russian, French, English and German. Early in his life he had a huge interest in English literature and poetry as well as in chemistry and physics. Alfred's father disliked his interest in poetry and found his son rather introverted. In order to widen Alfred's horizons his father sent him to different institutions for further training in chemical engineering. During a two-year period he visited Sweden, Germany, France and the United States. He came to enjoy Paris the best. There he worked in the private laboratory of Professor T. J. Pelouze, a famous chemist. He also met the young Italian chemist Ascanio Sobrero who, three years earlier, had invented nitroglycerine.
One of the most well known technological innovator and manufacturer was Thomas Alva Edison. He invented many devices which are still being used today, with some modifications. He even built a vote-recording device before he was twenty-one. Some inventions were the phonograph, incandescent light bulb, and the kinetoscope, which was much like a motion picture camera. In total, he has patented 1,093 inventions. He earned the nickname “The Wizard of Menlo Park”.
Benjamin Franklin was a man of many talents; in fact, he had so many talents that Thomas Jefferson called him “the greatest man of the age and country in which he lived." When someone as brilliant as Thomas Jefferson calls you the greatest then you are something special. Benjamin Franklin was a writer, printer, inventor, a statesman, and a great scientist just to name a few accomplishments Franklin achieved while he was alive. Benjamin Franklin not only improved the lives of the people of the world with his brilliant mind, his ideas and inventions still benefit the world over 270 years later. (Block, 2006)
Thomas Alva Edison was born February 11, 1847 in Milan, Ohio. He was born the youngest of seven siblings to Samuel and Nancy Edison. His father was an political activist from Canada, and his mother was an
Andrew Carnegie, who was an extremely astute businessman, founder of a great steel empire, and a very generous philanthropist, was born in Dumferline, Scotland on November 25, 1835. His father William Carnegie was a weaver in his cottage. His mother Mary Morrison was a housewife. Because of the growth of textile mills, William Carnegie found it very difficult to earn money, so he decided at this time his family would emigrate to the U.S., settling in Allegheny, Pennsylvania. Andrew Carnegie was forced to work at the age of 13 because his father was earning a small income.
Andrew Carnegie was born on November 25th, 1835 in Dunfermline, Scotland. His father was a hand loom weaver and Chartist. Carnegie believed in the importance of birthplace. “I was supremely so in my birthplace. Where one is born is very important, for different surroundings and traditions appeal to and stimulate different latent tendencies in the child.1”
Albert Einstein was undoubtedly one of the world’s greatest physicians and mathematicians of all time. Einstein’s theories of relativity completely changed the world and have had a huge impact on how we currently live our lives. From how we heat our homes to how we are able to use GPS navigation systems. His theories have greatly changed how we must view the world around us. His theories of relativity and his works during the world wars earned him a Nobel Prize in physics, to name one of the many he deservingly received.
He was born on November 27, 1701 in Uppsala, Sweden. According to Tekniska Museet from the National Museum of Science and Technology, Anders lived an exciting childhood. He was able to solve problems out of a University book by the age of twelve.
Richard Feynman was born on May 11, 1918 in Brooklyn to Lucille and Melville Feynman. Feynman's childhood home was in the community of Far Rockaway, in the outskirts if Manhattan.
“I find out what the world needs. Then I go ahead and try to invent it (Sullivan 5).” These are the word that Thomas Alva Edison lived his life by. This is why he is known as the greatest inventor in Americas history. Thomas was granted 1093 patents over his life time. Some of the main inventions that changed the world are the electric light bulb, phonograph and movie camera and projector and much more(Jenkins 1). Thomas Edison is well known for his invention of electricity but he has made many more contributions to society.
Humans have a natural sense of curiosity. How does this work? Why does that happen? What makes this do that? Among us, there will always be those who strive to find the answers to questions like these and more. One of these people was Albert Einstein, perhaps one of the greatest human minds this world has ever known.
This autobiography/biography was written at the time of the award and later published in the book series Les Prix Nobel/Nobel Lectures. The information is sometimes updated with an addendum submitted by the Laureate. To cite this document, always state the source as shown above.
“Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new.” The man who made countless mistakes and learned greatly from them spoke these wise words. Of all the scientists to originate from the nineteenth and twentieth century, his name is acknowledged by nearly all living people. Albert Einstein, a man whose name is practically parallel to a genius, is one of history’s most noteworthy figures (Willsey). He had made a remarkable, positive impact on society through his works and contributions to science.