Science is Fun Fridays!

 

These came out earlier this month, but I got distracted by other things going on, so we'll just recap them now.

Physics

Syukuro Manabe and Klaus Hasselmann - "for the physical modelling of Earth's climate, quantifying variability and reliably predicting global warming."

Georgio Parisi - "for the discovery of the interplay of disorder and fluctuations in physical systems from atomic to planetary scales."

Our Understanding of Complex Physical Systems

Chemistry

Benjamin List and David MacMillan - "for the development of asymmetric organocatalysis."

This is a precise new tool for molecular construction and will have an impact on pharmaceutical research, making chemistry greener.

Enamine and iminium ion–mediated organocatalysis 

Physiology/Medicine

David Julius and Ardem Patapoutian - "for their discoveries of receptors for temperature and touch."

They were able to explain the molecular basis for sensing heat, cold, and mechanical force.

Discoveries of receptors for temperature and touch

Economic Sciences

David Card - "for his empirical contributions to labour economics."

Joshua Angrist and Guido Imbens - "for their methodological contributions to the analysis of causal relationships."

Answering Causal Questions Using Observational Data 

Literature

Abdulrazak Gurnah - "for his uncompromising and compassionate penetration of the effects of colonialism and the fate of the refugee in the gulf between cultures and continents."

He grew up in Zanzibar but arrived in England as a refugee in the late 1960s.

Biobibliography

Peace

Maria Ressa and Dmitry Muratov - "for their efforts to safeguard freedom of expression, which is a precondition for democracy and lasting peace."

Maria has exposed abuse of power, use of violence and growing authoritarianism in the Philippines.

Dmitry has defended freedom of speech in Russia for decades.

They represent all journalists who stand up for these freedoms.