What does the announcement of the 2021 Nobel Prize in Chemistry have to do with ordinary people?

On the afternoon of the 6th, Beijing time, the 2021 Nobel Prize in Chemistry was announced. American scientist David MacMillan and German scientist Benjamin List were awarded the award for "progress in asymmetric organic catalysis research."

Origin of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry

The Nobel Prize in Chemistry was established according to the will of the famous Swedish chemist Alfred Bernhard Nobel. It is awarded to "the person who has made the most important chemical discovery or improvement" and is awarded by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.

The Nobel Prize in Chemistry was first awarded in 1901 to Dutch chemist Jacobus Henriks van Tove for his discoveries of the laws of chemical kinetics and osmotic pressure in solutions, as well as his contributions to the theory of stereochemistry and chemical equilibrium.

What is "asymmetric organocatalysis"

Catalysts are a fundamental tool for chemists, but for a long time researchers believed that only two types of catalysts were available in principle: metals and enzymes. It was not until 2000 that Professors Benjamin List and David MacMillan developed a third type of catalyst. This catalyst is based on small organic molecules and is known as "asymmetric organocatalysis."

"This catalytic concept is so simple and ingenious that many people have wondered why we hadn't thought of it sooner," said Johan Qvist, chairman of the Nobel Committee for Chemistry.

Organic catalysts work by building a stable framework of carbon atoms to which more active chemical groups can attach. Common elements contained in these catalysts include oxygen, nitrogen, sulfur or phosphorus, which means they can be produced in an environmentally friendly and cheap way and made into products such as medicines, plastics, perfumes and flavors.

What's really driving the rapid expansion of the use of organocatalysts is their ability to drive asymmetric catalysis. When building molecules, it often happens that two symmetrical molecules are formed, like your hands. They are mirror images of each other. But chemists usually only need one of them, especially when making pharmaceuticals.

The field of organocatalysis has developed at an astonishing rate since 2000. Benjamin List and David MacMillan remain leaders in the field, having demonstrated that organocatalysts can be used to drive a vast array of chemical reactions.

Using these reactions, researchers can more efficiently build any number of molecules, including new drugs and molecules that capture light in solar cells. In this way, organic catalysts have brought great benefits to humanity.

The relationship between the Chemistry Prize and ordinary people

In fact, the scientific research results of the Chemistry Prize have long been integrated into the lives of ordinary people. Let’s look at two examples: mobile phone batteries and plastics.

In October 2019, Goodenough, the "father of lithium batteries", Yoshino Akira, the inventor of modern lithium batteries, and Whittingham, who made pioneering research in the field of lithium batteries, shared the Nobel Prize in Chemistry that year.

The reason given by the Nobel Prize official website is: "They created a rechargeable world." Look at your hands, and then look around you. In the world we live in, are lithium batteries already everywhere?

Another example is plastic. Toothbrushes, takeaway boxes, mobile phone cases, airplane parts...it can be said that plastic has been integrated into every aspect of modern society.

In 1953, German scientist Staudinger won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his contributions to polymer chemistry; in 1963, Italian scientist Natta and German scientist Ziegler jointly won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for the synthesis of polymer plastics.

In addition to these two examples, the "nuclear magnetic resonance imaging" technology that has been popularized in hospitals and the neon lights that decorate the night sky are all typical examples of the application of Nobel Prize results in practice.

Nobel Prize in Chemistry: Women's influence grows

Looking at the list of Nobel Prize winners in Chemistry, it is almost entirely men. There are only a few women, including Marie Curie. This issue has also been widely criticized by the outside world, and even accused of gender discrimination of "preferring sons over daughters".

However, after entering the 21st century, especially in recent years, this situation has changed. From 1901 to 2020, 185 people have won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, of which only 7 are women, and 4 of them won the prize after entering the 21st century.

Especially in 2020, French scientist Charpentier and American scientist Doudna shared the Chemistry Prize for their contributions to gene editing technology, marking the first time in history that two women have won the award. It was also named one of the top ten women's moments in 2020 by the United Nations.