Be sure to stop by the Dr. Halperin’s latest exhibit of items of interest on the history of medicine and science on display on the wall between Doc’s Café and the bookstore in the Basic Sciences Building. The current exhibit includes autographs of Nobel prize winners on first day covers. A first day cover is an envelope or card bearing a stamp which is cancelled on the first day the stamp is placed on sale. Click on the tabs above to see the individuals whose autographs are included in the exhibit and the first day covers from Dr. Halperin’s collection themselves.
Known for: The inventor of dynamite and holder of 355 patents.
Born: 21 October 1833.
Died: 10 December 1896.
Languages: Spoke five languages fluently at the age of 17.
Professions: Swedish chemist, inventor, engineer, entrepreneur, business man, author and pacifist.
Fortune: In his will he left 31 million SEK (today about 265 million dollar) to fund the prizes.
"I intend to leave after my death a large fund for the promotion of the peace idea, but I am skeptical as to its results."
On 27 November 1895, Alfred Nobel signed his last will and testament, giving the largest share of his fortune to a series of prizes in Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, Literature and Peace - the Nobel Prizes.
In 1968, Sveriges Riksbank (Sweden's central bank) established The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel.
