It s All Elementary: Decades of Insights from Nobel Laureates in Chemistry (preview)

See Inside

As laureates and newcomers in chemistry form new bonds, we celebrate their achievements, past and future

By Ferris Jabr

Image: BOMBOLAND

In Brief

• Every summer in Lindau, Germany, Nobel Prize recipients and up-and-coming researchers in a particular field gather and socialize. This year the meeting focuses on chemistry.
• In celebration of the Lindau meeting, Scientific American has chosen 11 excerpts from articles in the magazine's archives authored by Nobel Laureates in chemistry.
• The excerpts cover a surprisingly wide range of subjects, from the details of atoms and molecules to the chemical makeup of the earth's atmosphere. Some describe fundamental discoveries about natural elements; others recount researchers' attempts to create brand-new substances.
• Some of the questions that preoccupied chemists many decades ago remain unanswered today, and certain man-made materials once considered unusual and of uncertain value have now become commonplace.

Chemists typically concern themselves with the properties of matter at the level of atoms and molecules. That focus may seem narrow, but it is quite the opposite. Chemistry reveals a great deal about the world around us, including the origins of life, how the human body works and how tiny molecules can profoundly change the earth's atmosphere. And, of course, chemistry makes it possible to create useful materials not found in nature.

Such insights have been celebrated for more than a century, as evidenced by the long record of Nobel Prizes for advances in chemistry. This summer past winners of the prize are joining up-and-coming scientists in Lindau, Germany, to discuss previous breakthroughs and future prospects. In honor of the event?the 63rd Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting?Scientific American is publishing excerpts from articles authored by Nobel Laureates in chemistry over the years, beginning on page 70. Many of the snippets resonate with researchers' priorities today.

This article was originally published with the title A Nobel Gathering.

Source: http://rss.sciam.com/~r/sciam/history-of-science/~3/NwkrPmZ5Nm8/article.cfm

frozen four