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Maybe someone who knows more about this can confirm, but I've heard that Nobel left out mathematics because he felt it was too abstract or esoteric in compariso

by chasing 12y ago

Maybe someone who knows more about this can confirm, but I've heard that Nobel left out mathematics because he felt it was too abstract or esoteric in comparison with these other sciences which (he felt) had more of a chance of directly improving the world. Maybe an analogy would be that while he promoted a prize for literature, he didn't promote a prize for typography or spelling. Not saying I agree with that idea, but this is what I've heard. Again: Someone who knows better, please correct my misunderstanding if I'm wrong.

kryptiskt 12y ago
His intentions for the prizes were a bit different than what they developed to. He envisioned that the science prizes would have a more practical slant and be awarded soon after the invention or discovery of something cool, and the literature prize was for "idealistic" literature. The academies that awarded the prizes bent the rules in a direction more to their liking. Probably for the better, awarding discoveries just for the last year would lead to either excessive caution or embarrassments.