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Hmmm. This years' nobel prizes are a bit more boring compared to prior ones. I understand that not all ideas or inventions are created equal, but I prefer more
by shevy-java 1y ago
Hmmm. This years' nobel prizes are a bit more boring compared to prior ones. I understand that not all ideas or inventions are created equal, but I prefer more raw epicness.
- StopDisinfo910 1y agoThe Nobel prizes are not there to produce good sounding opeds and "epic" news to entertain the general public. It’s a prize given to scientists to highlight and encourage valuable research according to a jury of pairs.
- gerikson 1y agoWhen you have a yearly prize, you're bound to get off-years. Maybe the Nobels should be structured to only be given out every 4 years, like the Olympics. But that would be a huge blow to the Stockholm hospitality business.
- JKCalhoun 1y agoYou hit it on the head: comparing the Nobel prizes to the Olympics. Perhaps to some they look too much like the Olympics: periodic, awarded in various categories. I suggest the similarities end there though.
- nylonstrung 1y agoThis seems pretty epic to me- an entirely new material primitive with novel real world properties
- speed_spread 1y agoYou can't discover cold fusion every year.
- JKCalhoun 1y agoAaaay! (Ouch)
- PlasmonOwl 1y agoWhat do you mean boring? MOFs are a fascinating area of chemistry. Outside of nature, they are most likely our best example of rationally designed nanoscale systems. In chemistry, rational design - that based on rules - is a rare thing. Molecules bump around and stick together in unpredictable ways, but MOFs allow us to create very well defined nanoscale frameworks. They’re famously tricky, though!
- queuebert 1y agoHow about the Ig Nobel Prize? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ig_Nobel_Prize https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ig_Nobel_Prize
- zozbot234 1y agoYou'll have to wait for the Nobel Peace Prize announcement if you want to see some "epicness" this year.
- whizzter 1y agoWhile quantum-tunneling is quite niche I think it's given to demonstrate something with everyday life application (considering the outsized impact of microprocessors on society). This MoF thing is quite damn cool though, advancing moisture capturing in arid regions itself is big. But also being able to separate chemicals in a more controlled manner sounds like something really groundbreaking that will probably impact chemistry for a long time to come.
- CalChris 1y agoQuantum tunneling has been productized for decades. https://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/Fairview-Microwave/FMMT6011?qs=3GbUB62Nf7d%252Bi1ROy8COAg%3D%3D https://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/Fairview-Microwave/FMMT...
- whizzter 1y agoRight, but it's not anything that most people will be directly exposed to (quantum tunneling effects in microprocessors might be more relevant but still hard to grasp for people). If water capture in arid environments actually scales with this method, then that's far more directly exposed to people.
- condensedcrab 1y agoNobel prizes in Physics and Chemistry tend to be awarded long after discovery. It's part of the process in evaluating the impact of a specific discovery. That being said, you get stuff like high Tc superconductors that are awarded the following year: https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/physics/1987/press-release/ https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/physics/1987/press-release...
- j7ake 1y agoRather than scoff at the selection, maybe use the opportunity to recalibrate and expand what one considers “interesting”?
- astrange 1y agoLast years were rather tortured. It feels weird to give the chemistry prize to the CEO of a computer science lab.