Talk:Alfred Nobel

Sounds POV to me

"This interpretation has been revised, and the prize given to, for example, Dario Fo and José Saramago, who definitely do not belong to the camp of literary idealism." Just doesn't seems like it fits. Coolguy 021603 03:07, 7 February 2006 (UTC)

Need the obituary

It would be very good if a copy of the premature obituary can be put here, or if it is not in public domain, a photograph of that obituary would be nice.--Anupam Srivastava 19:32, 2 March 2006 (UTC)lol

It was published in 1888, so it's certainly in the public domain. However, I'm a bit sceptical whether the thing exists! At least it seems all the sources on the web say the same thing, with the same (low) level of detail. (E.g. noone seems to know which newspaper or which day?) --BluePlatypus 15:49, 16 March 2006 (UTC)

I looked into it but I couldn't find anything specific, does that mean that it actually belongs on this article if we can't find concrete evidence of it's existence? Also I heard that his father was killed in an explosion, does that belong on this page anywhere? Shinryu 15:50, 19 May 2006 (UTC)

It sounds as if it is true, though we'll need someone to research it more thoroughly to find the story. His father dying in an explosion is also very notable, if you have a source be sure to add it. Richard001 20:46, 7 October 2006 (UTC)

"The amount set aside for the Nobel Prize foundation was 31 million kronor" How about putting also how much in dollars (or euros) is 31 million kronor? It would be useful, thanks. --Joanberenguer 23:58, 17 May 2006 (UTC)

Got it here: 31,000,000.00 SEK Sweden Kronor = 4,223,500.00 USD United States Dollars

                     1 SEK = 0.136242 USD   1 USD = 7.33988 SEK  

xe.com Shinryu 15:54, 19 May 2006 (UTC)

Is this in 1896 currency? u p p l a n d 16:16, 19 May 2006 (UTC)

Does it matter that much? No it is the current exchange rate. I figured that people would be more interested in what it was worth as of now. Shinryu 15:27, 22 May 2006 (UTC)

I don't know, but it may. I think it would be better to convert to 1896 USD or UKP. u p p l a n d 15:58, 22 May 2006 (UTC)

Quoting it with current exchange rate sounds pretty stupid to me. What do we do after ten years have passed? Change it to reflect 2016 rate, huh? The only sound ways of stating historical amounts of money are either a) the absolute value of that historical period, or b) the relative value of that day, compared to today, taking into account inflation, consumer price indices, average household income and so forth. Most likely 31 million 1896 kronor is much, much more than 4 million 2006 dollars as per b). 82.128.187.219 07:25, 27 November 2006 (UTC) Matti Nuortio, Oulu, Finland; Nov 27 2006 He would turn over in his grave if he knew about the newest reciprient of the PEACE PRIZE.

This is a tricky calculation in several ways. Happily, we're only looking for something approximate(?) There are two conversions to be made, one from 1896 Krona to 1896 dollars, and another to 2007 dollars. I had trouble finding sources, but this article says that about 1905, it was 3.7 Krona to about 1 US dollars. [1]. That would make 31,000,000 Krona more like 8,000,000 1905 US dollars, than the 4 million figure given above. Then, that needs to be converted into 2007 dollars -- unfortunately there are no "cross-history time travel exchange rates", so the sites that do these calculations give several figures -- depending on what factors you consider important. The LOWEST of these figures is 159 million. [2] So, the figure of 4 million in the article, any way you slice it, is probably far too low. On this basis I'm going to change the article to be a little more representative, ok? Alpha Ralpha Boulevard (talk) 00:56, 21 July 2008 (UTC)

I think it would be best to quote closest possible exchange rates from the time the will was made, else it won't bear any significance. Intwizs (talk) 11:11, 3 September 2012 (UTC)

What did he regret doing???

Hi guys, I would like to know why did he regret making his original invention THANKS!

Napalm?

I heard that Nobel invented naplam. Anyone? --Audiodude 20:23, 4 August 2006 (UTC)

The napalm article gives it credit to the Greeks or a WWII Harvard chemist, depending on how you want to define it. Nobel isn't mentioned. Alpha Ralpha Boulevard (talk) 02:20, 21 July 2008 (UTC)

Sir in title

I noticed that somebody gave him the title of Sir in the dynamite section. If he was knighted then he should have sir in his full name at the beggining of this article. If not, then it should be taken out. Not being mean, just saying it could get confusing for somebody.RyanDaniel 16:26, 7 September 2006 (UTC)

Country

Hello. Just one question, that I cannot find any answer in any source i've been searching in. If Nobel was living in Bosfors in Sweden, was born in Stockholm in Sweden, was speaking Swedish, and despite the fact that he was travelling that often he was considering himself of Swedish origin - how come Norway??? Nobel prizes are being given in Norway and by Norwegian committee.

Thanks in advance. M. 195.136.30.45 08:31, 15 September 2006 (UTC)

Actually only the peace prize is decided by Norwegian committee. Don't know why tough.

When Alfred Nobel died Norway was a part of Sweden (Norway recieved its independence in 1905), that's the reason why. I also think that the peace prize didn't have the same importance then, as it has today. /Qszet

Allthough the will only states that it is so. But it's the general interpretation that Norway's parliment as charged with electing the people awarding the peace prize in Norway because of the significance that it had for Norways self-governance and thus the sustainable peace within and eventual peacefull dissolution of the union.

nObel or nobEl?

Hi all, I am wondering if a Scandinavian person can answer this. Is the emphasis in "Nobel" on the "o" or the "e"? Thank you. --Tvossos 08:43, 8 December 2006 (UTC)

It's on the e in the name Nobel which conveniently makes it distinguishable from the word nobel (noble) which has the emphasis on the o.

no-bell —Preceding unsigned comment added by 67.168.100.183 (talk) 19:00, 28 November 2010 (UTC)

Citation

they should cite this: [3]

Citation of "^ The History Channel, Modern Marvels, episode 038 (originally aired 21 June 1999)" seems to be inaccurate. Based on another Wikipedia page this is season 6, episode 25, which would make it easier to find. I couldn't figure out why it would be cited as episode 38. In addition, it may be good to give the title of the episode, "Dynamite." Werikblack (talk) 13:56, 5 October 2011 (UTC)

Which Son?

Wasn't Alfred Immanuel Nobel's fourth son?Greenhaze 72 19:52, 15 March 2007 (UTC)

"Nobel Prize supposition" section removed

I don't believe that Nobel's biography is the appropriate place (per Wikipedia:Avoid trivia sections in articles) to mention the urban legend of his wife cheating with a mathematician as it's already covered by the Nobel Prize#Mathematics prize section. --  Netsnipe  ►  15:16, 27 April 2007 (UTC)

Resting place coordinates

The "Resting place coordinates" seem to be the same as the coordinates on the cemetery's article. Is his grave at that location or are those the coordinates for a random place in the cemetery? Can someone there supply the exact coordinates? (SEWilco 20:43, 6 August 2007 (UTC))

They are the cemetery's coordinates, which is appropriate in the light of something more precise, Of course, should more precise coordinates be available, they should be used. Andy Mabbett | Talk to Andy Mabbett 20:53, 6 August 2007 (UTC)

Wikisource

Alfred Nobel is the current Collaboration of the Week, collecting Public Domain works written by and about Nobel. If you've never been acquainted with Wikisource before (an official sister project of Wikipedia), then this is a great opportunity to help improve the world's knowledge about Nobel as he was seen in his time! Sherurcij ^{(Speaker for the Dead)} 03:02, 3 September 2007 (UTC)

The Prizes

This section is inaccurate in its quotation of the "French Newspaper" (which is already vague enough, even for a pseudo-encyclopedia written by a handful of twelve-year-olds).

"We can only speculate about the reasons for Nobel's establishment of the prizes that bear his name. He was reticent about himself, and he confided in no one about his decision in the months preceding his death. The most plausible assumption is that a bizarre incident in 1888 may have triggered the train of reflection that culminated in his bequest for the Nobel Prizes. That year Alfred's brother Ludvig had died while staying in Cannes, France. The French newspapers reported Ludvig's death but confused him with Alfred, and one paper sported the headline “Le marchand de la mort est mort” (“The merchant of death is dead.”) Perhaps Alfred Nobel established the prizes to avoid precisely the sort of posthumous reputation suggested by this premature obituary. It is certain that the actual awards he instituted reflect his lifelong interest in the fields of physics, chemistry, physiology, and literature. There is also abundant evidence that his friendship with the prominent Austrian pacifist Bertha von Suttner inspired him to establish the prize for peace."

The paragraph quoted above is from a real encyclopedia. One written by grown-ups. http://www.britannica.com/nobelprize/article-9056007 —Preceding unsigned comment added by 193.63.81.96 (talk) 11:10, 21 May 2008 (UTC)

Patents

In the Wikipedia article on Nobel, it would be nice to mention some of Nobel's work other than his invention of dynamite. Under the "Dynamite" section of the article, for example, it would be helpful to write something like, "Nobel retained a keen interest in research, especially in areas relating to synthetic materials, and established laboratories in Stockholm, Hamburg, Paris, Bofors, and in San Remo. In all, Nobel wound up with 355 patents." For source, you can cite http://nobelpeaceprize.org/eng_com_will1.html Again, for any editors who have access to this Wikipedia page, adding these comments would give readers some idea of the extent of Nobel's research interests (far more than "just" dynamite). Comments added by David on September 20th, 2008 —Preceding unsigned comment added by 200.107.49.97 (talk) 23:04, 20 September 2008 (UTC)

Contradicting information regarding Nobel's education

"When Alfred was 18, he went to the United States to study chemistry for four years and worked for a short period under John Ericsson."

"Despite the lack of formal secondary and tertiary level education ..."

So if he studied chemistry for four years that's formal tertiary education, isn't it? I don't know the facts, but these two statements are obviously contradicting each other. I could not find any definite biographical information in other encyclopediae, neither in Encarta nor in the Brockhaus Encyclopedia. Please fix, if you are certain about it.

--daarribas 18:36, 3 March 2009 (UTC)

I'm not sure that the information added is accurate. John Ericsson was an engineer, not a chemist. The statement that "he worked for a short period under John Ericsson" does appear to be confirmed by reasonably reliable sources; and the same source says that he did not stay in the USA for four years.Pyrotec (talk) 19:25, 3 March 2009 (UTC)

Other Inventions and Other Uses

The article makes no mention of the fact that nobel was treated with nitro glycerine for his heart condition. It also make no mention of his other invention. This is a disgracefully short entry, especially if you compare it to say, Michael Vick, who's impact on the world is irrelevant. Pretty Disgraceful. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 78.149.231.3 (talk) 17:31, 21 October 2009 (UTC) yesssss

Article needs a good spell check

precusor in the article should be precursor. Wolfess1951 (talk) 10:42, 8 October 2010 (UTC)

How did he die?

This article and Nobel Foundation are contradictory. One says he died of a stroke, the other says he died of a cerebral haemorrhage. They may be the same thing (I don't actually know), but they link to different articles. Avengah (talk) 13:08, 16 September 2011 (UTC)

Cause of Death inconsistent

There is an inconsistency.

The Nobel Prize article states "... Alfred Nobel died in his villa in San Remo, Italy, from a cerebral haemorrhage. ..."

Tha Alfred Nobel article states "... He died of a stroke on 10 December 1896 at Sanremo, Italy. ..."

Which one is right? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 201.89.244.67 (talk) 16:23, 28 April 2012 (UTC)

From the little I know, it seems that both can be true. He may have died of a hemorrhagic stroke and only the descriptors given in the sources are different. An expert in the field could no doubt shed more light on the distinctions between the two attributed causes of death. I'm not sure if the state of brain science at the time would determine the degree of refined accuracy concerning cause of death. Many strong sources say 'cerebral hemorrhage', including Britannia. Many others say 'stroke', including Alfred Nobel: A Biography By Kenne Fant and the highly respected journal Science. It is a great shame that this article is not in good shape and referenced, given the influence and high profile nature of the man. All thoughts welcome. Span (talk) 18:47, 28 April 2012 (UTC)