List of Australian Nobel laureates

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Since 1915 there have been fifteen Australians awarded the Nobel Prize.[1] Almost half of these prizes (eight) have been awarded in the field of Physiology or Medicine[2] Most Australians awarded Nobel prizes before the end of the awarding of British/Imperial honours (in 1992) also received (or were offered) knighthoods.

This list includes laureates who were not born in Australia, but who nevertheless spent a significant portion of their training or career there.

In 2017, the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, which was launched in Australia, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

Australian Nobel laureates[edit]

Year Laureate Field Life Citation
2011 Brian P. Schmidt Physics 1967– "for the discovery of the accelerating expansion of the Universe through observations of distant supernovae" shared with Saul Perlmutter and Adam G. Riess[3]
2009 Elizabeth Blackburn Physiology or Medicine 1948– "for the discovery of how chromosomes are protected by telomeres and the enzyme telomerase" shared with Carol W. Greider and Jack W. Szostak[4]
2005 Barry J. Marshall Physiology or Medicine 1951– "for their discovery of the bacterium Helicobacter pylori and its role in gastritis and peptic ulcer disease" shared with J. Robin Warren[5]
2005 J. Robin Warren Physiology or Medicine 1937– "for their discovery of the bacterium Helicobacter pylori and its role in gastritis and peptic ulcer disease" shared with Barry J. Marshall[6]
2003 J. M. Coetzee Literature 1940– "who in innumerable guises portrays the surprising involvement of the outsider"[7]
1996 Peter C. Doherty Physiology or Medicine 1940– "for their discoveries concerning the specificity of the cell mediated immune defence" shared with Rolf M. Zinkernagel[8]
1975 Sir John Cornforth Chemistry 1918–2013 "for his work on the stereochemistry of enzyme-catalyzed reactions" shared with Vladimir Prelog[9]
1973 Patrick White Literature 1912–1990 "for an epic and psychological narrative art which has introduced a new continent into literature"[10]
1970 Sir Bernard Katz Physiology or Medicine 1911–2003 "for their discoveries concerning the humoral transmittors in the nerve terminals and the mechanism for their storage, release and inactivation" shared with Ulf von Euler and Julius Axelrod[11]
1964 Alexander M. Prokhorov Physics 1916–2002 "for fundamental work in the field of quantum electronics, which has led to the construction of oscillators and amplifiers based on the maser-laser principle" shared with Charles H. Townes and Nicolay G. Basov[12]
1963 Sir John Carew Eccles Physiology or Medicine 1903–1997 "for their discoveries concerning the ionic mechanisms involved in excitation and inhibition in the peripheral and central portions of the nerve cell membrane" shared with Alan L. Hodgkin and Andrew F. Huxley[13]
1960 Sir Frank Macfarlane Burnet Physiology or Medicine 1899–1985 "for discovery of acquired immunological tolerance" shared with Peter Medawar[14]
1945 Howard Florey Physiology or Medicine 1898–1968 "for the discovery of penicillin and its curative effect in various infectious diseases" shared with Alexander Fleming and Ernst B. Chain[15]
1915 Sir William Henry Bragg Physics 1862–1942 "for their services in the analysis of crystal structure by means of X-rays" shared with William Lawrence Bragg[16]
1915 Sir William Lawrence Bragg Physics 1890–1971 "for their services in the analysis of crystal structure by means of X-rays" shared with William Henry Bragg[17]

Australian laureates by birthplace[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Australia's Nobel Prize winners". Australian Geographic. 3 August 2015. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
  2. ^ "Nobel Prize Facts". Archived from the original on 1 September 2012. Retrieved 7 September 2012.
  3. ^ "Brian P. Schmidt - Biographical". www.nobelprize.org. Archived from the original on 5 October 2011.
  4. ^ "Elizabeth H. Blackburn - Biographical". www.nobelprize.org. Archived from the original on 6 June 2010.
  5. ^ "Barry J. Marshall - Autobiography". www.nobelprize.org. Archived from the original on 8 June 2010.
  6. ^ "J. Robin Warren - Autobiography". www.nobelprize.org. Archived from the original on 8 June 2010.
  7. ^ "Literature 2003". www.nobelprize.org. Archived from the original on 11 July 2006.
  8. ^ "Peter C. Doherty - Autobiography". www.nobelprize.org. Archived from the original on 9 June 2010.
  9. ^ "John Cornforth - Autobiography". www.nobelprize.org. Archived from the original on 9 June 2010.
  10. ^ "Patrick White - Autobiography". www.nobelprize.org. Archived from the original on 9 June 2010.
  11. ^ "Sir Bernard Katz - Biography". www.nobelprize.org. Archived from the original on 9 June 2010.
  12. ^ "The Nobel Prize in Physics 1964".
  13. ^ "Sir John Eccles - Biography". www.nobelprize.org. Archived from the original on 9 June 2010.
  14. ^ "Sir Frank MacFarlane Burnet - Biography". www.nobelprize.org. Archived from the original on 9 June 2010.
  15. ^ "Sir Frank MacFarlane Burnet - Biography". www.nobelprize.org. Archived from the original on 9 June 2010.
  16. ^ "William Bragg - Biography". www.nobelprize.org. Archived from the original on 6 June 2010.
  17. ^ "Lawrence Bragg - Biography". www.nobelprize.org. Archived from the original on 6 June 2010.

External links[edit]