5 Nobel laureates deserving to return their prizes

Most often, Nobel Prize winners are individuals whose discoveries and works have contributed in some way to the scientific and cultural advancement of humanity. However, we said “ most of the time ” because some of the individuals recognized by the honoring committee have taken action or made claims that go against the very essence of the award.

National Geographic's Mark Strauss brought together some of these figures - who proved to be racist, failed to recognize colleagues whose help was instrumental in their studies, used their knowledge to do evil, and so on. -, and we at Mega Curioso selected 5 Nobel Prize winners who, as you will see, deserved to return their prizes. Check out:

1 - Fritz Haber

German chemist Fritz Haber received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1918 for his discovery of how to synthesize ammonia from nitrogen and hydrogen to use as fertilizer. As a result, there has been a dramatic increase in world food production, and today half of the world's crops depend on Haber's method of producing fertilizers. Great, isn't it?

But Haber also had a dark side ... During World War I, the chemist began to develop ways of using chlorine on the battlefield, and in 1915 he personally accompanied the shipment of 6, 000 gas cylinders that were used. to kill over 1, 000 French and Algerian soldiers in less than 10 minutes.

2 - Johannes Fibiger

In 1926, Danish scientist Johannes Fibiger was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his discovery of a parasite that could cause cancer. Even at the time it was believed that his research was the greatest contribution to experimental medicine of that generation - only not.

The Dane conducted his studies on mice with small tumors in their stomachs that he believed were caused by parasitic worms. However, further research has revealed that while it is true that certain infections may result in the onset of some cancers, what Fibiger observed in the animals was swellings caused by vitamin A deficiency due to worm infestation.

3 - William Shockley

In addition to winning the 1956 Nobel Prize in Physics for his collaboration on semiconductor research and transistor development, William Shockley was somewhat responsible for the rise of Silicon Valley - when he founded his semiconductor company in Palo Alto, California. California. However, despite the brilliant career, the physicist managed to tarnish his reputation with some very controversial statements.

Shockley was racist and defended the principles of eugenics - based on the idea that some "races" are superior to others. He said African Americans were inferior to white Americans, and the intellectual differences between the two ethnic groups were proof that intelligence and intellectual ability are genetic factors.

And as if that statement was not absurd enough, Shockley still believed that the highest rate of reproduction among African Americans had a regressive effect on evolution. To make matters worse, the physicist also proposed solutions to the “problem, ” suggesting that the US Government aid system should be replaced by financial aids that allowed genetically inferior individuals to be sterilized!

4 - Joshua Lederberg

US physician Joshua Lederberg was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1958 thanks to the contribution of his wife, microbiologist Esther Lederberg. Incidentally, without her, Joshua would not have received any awards - due to her work on bacterial genetics and genetic recombination - and unfairly, besides not sharing the tribute with her husband, her name was barely mentioned during the thank-you speech.

Esther discovered a virus that infected bacteria and, in partnership with Joshua, developed a method of transferring microorganisms from one petri dish to another. She came up with the idea of ​​using her compact sponge to collect the bacteria and deposit them in the containers used in the laboratory, and to this day a very similar technique is used in the study of antibiotic resistance. However, she had no recognition for her contribution.

5 - Kary Mullis

In 1993, Kary Mullis received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for developing the polymerase chain reaction - a technique that allows the amplification and creation of multiple copies of DNA without the need for a living organism - and basically for introducing a true revolution in the field of biological and medical research.

So many people find it surprising that the biochemist is an astrology enthusiast, that he said he had an encounter with an alien - who looked like a brilliant badger - and that he publicly admitted that he was close to LSD. But these are not the most striking claims coming from Mullis's mouth.

The scientist is a strong proponent of the theories of molecular biologist Peter Duesberg, who claims that the human immunodeficiency virus - HIV - is harmless. For Mullis, AIDS would be caused by the use of drugs and also the drugs used to treat the disease, despite the huge amount of evidence to the contrary.

Bonus

James Watson

As you know, James Watson is one of the discoverers of the double helix structure of DNA - for which he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1962. However, despite being genius, Watson has already caused much controversy thanks to the nonsense. offensive he has ever released in public.

Once, during a lecture at Berkeley University, Watson allegedly implied that there are biochemical links between body mass and ambition, as well as between skin color and libido - explaining that this is why Latinos are “ calientes ”. Haven't found the comments absurd yet? So wait!

Watson would also have said that "small doses of anti-Semitism are justifiable" and that he was pessimistic about the future of Africa, since "all the social policies we have are based on the fact that Africans are as intelligent as we are - which all tests say it's not true. ” Do you believe that ?!

And like Joshua Lederberg, Watson never gave any credit to the works of Rosalind Franklin, whose work with X-ray crystallography allowed him to discover the structure of DNA.

* Posted on 10/19/2015