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Levels: Intermediate. Secondary, University, and Adult This collection of 20 brief biographies of Alfred Nobel and a representative selection of past and present Nobel Prize winners is back by popular demand! All six prize categories are represented: Peace, Literature, Economics, Physiology or Medicine, Physics, and Chemistry. The winners' countries include: South Africa, India, Tibet, the United States, Poland, the Soviet Union, Germany, Egypt, England, China, Columbia, and Sweden. Who are these materials for? Anyone building listening and reading skills. The readings are arranged from easy to difficult. There are three audio CD's available. Each reading has been recorded twice by one of seven native speakers, male and female, from different parts of the United States. On the first two CD's, the readings are slow and deliberate. On the third, the same readings are read faster, at the speed of natural conversation. At the back of the student workbook, the readings are reprinted with key words left out. Much of this key vocabulary is repeated in the selections for reinforcement. The number of blanks in the exercises increases as the selections become more difficult. This is an excellent way to get students to focus on word spelling and meaning. The format of the materials allows maximum flexibility. The book can be used as a reader or for listening exercises alone. Students can read and then listen or vice versa. And, of course, they can use the slow or the fast CD, or both. Teaching suggestions are included in the book. Photos from Nobel Foundation archives. ... Read more

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In depth profiles of:
Aung San Suu Kyi - politician
Marie Curie - physicist
Nadine Gordimer - writer
Barbara McClintock - geneticist
Toni Morrison - writer
Mairead Corrigan and Betty Williams - peace activists
plus numerous brief profiles ... Read more

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IF YOU COULD ASK A NOBEL PRIZE WINNER ANYTHING YOU WANTED...

Since 1901, the Nobel Prize has honored the world's great geniuses in the most important fields: physics, chemistry, medicine, literature, economics, and world peace. What if children could ask these creative thinkers about some of life's most intriguing mysteries, such as "Why can't I live on french fries?" and "What is love?" The answers from the Dalai Lama, Mikhail Gorbachev, Shimon Peres, Desmond Tutu, and seventeen other Nobel Prize laureates are rich with surprise, humor, and of course, wisdom. Every single answer will make you think...and learn something new.

WHAT IS LOVE?
The Dalai Lama

WHY CAN'T I LIVE ON FRENCH FRIES?
Richard J. Roberts

WHAT IS POLITICS?
Shimon Peres

WHY IS THE SKY BLUE?
Mario J. Molina

WHY DO I FORGET SOME THINGS AND NOT OTHERS?
Erwin Neher

WHY DO WE HAVE TO GO TO SCHOOL?
Kenzaburo Oe

WHY IS THERE WAR?
Desmond Tutu

WHY DO WE FEEL PAIN?
Günter Blobel

HOW DO I WIN THE NOBEL PRIZE?
Mikhail Gorbachev

WHY ARE SOME PEOPLE RICH AND OTHERS POOR?
Daniel L. McFadden

...AND ELEVEN OTHER RESPONSES ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

If you ever wondered why ; now get the answers from those who know.
An amazing book in many ways. It is comprised of 22 questions that face every person on the planet. The questions are ones that mankind has been searching for answers ever since he has wondered why things are as they are.
The answers have been supplied by 22 Nobel Prize laureates.One of the traits of brilliant people is their ability to explain the complex in a simple way that can be easily understood.Although ,on first glance,one might be tempted to dismiss this book as one only suitable for school students;but it is a book suitable for all ages and all levels of knowledge.
Only if you could give an answer to the following questions,would this book not be worth your time to read.

How do I win the Nobel Prize?

Why can't I live on French Fries?

Why do we have to go to school?

Why are some people rich and others poor?

Why do we have scientists?

What is politics?

What is love?

Why do we feel pain?

Why is pudding soft and stone hard?

Why is the sky blue?

How does the telephone work"

Will I soon have a clone?

Why is there war?

Why do mom and dad have to work?

What is air?

Why do I get sick?

Why are leaves green?

Why do I forget some things and not others?

Why are there boys and girls?

Why does 1+1=2?

How much longer will the earth keep turning?

Now that you know the questions,and also know how well you might answer the;let Nobel Prize laureates ,who have been recognized for their work and knowledge in their fields ;give you answers to them. And their answers are unbelievably understandable.

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I wish more of the world was explained this way
My seven year old daughter loves this book. It tackles a wide array of topics (nutrition, poverty, economics, love) in a kid-friendly way without sacrificing important concepts. As a parent, I often tire of reading children's books aloud, but this one is as interesting for me as it is for my daughter. My daughter likes the book so much that she carries it in her backpack for emergency reading material and agreed that it would make a lovely Christmas gift for her 8-year-old cousin. It would also be appropriate for boys and I believe it will still be interesting throughout her elementary school years. I hope that the publisher will continue to tap into the brilliant minds and thoughtful pedagogy of the Nobel community and publish another volume or two.

A great, great book!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This book was so great, I can't imagine why someone would not like it. Some parts were so good, I reread them many times. WHY WE HAVE TO GO TO SCHOOL, WHAT IS POLITICS were a few of my favorites but WHAT IS LOVE, WHY ARE SOME PEOPLE RICH AND OTHERS POOR were not so good. Overall, this book is a sure hit! ... Read more

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The bestselling, prize-winning biography of a mathematical genius who suffered from schizophrenia, miraculously recovered, and then won a Nobel Prize. ... Read more

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Since it was first awarded in 1901, only twelve women have won the Nobel Prize for Peace. They hail from all over the world, including the United States, Europe, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Central America. Engaging and inspiring, these women clearly demonstrate that there is something each of us can do to advance a just, positive peace. Whether they began by insisting on garbage collection or simply by planting a tree, each understood that peace must be global in order to be sustained. All learned that peace is not always popular, but believed they must persevere. All are truly champions for peace. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Peace makers
Written in an accessible and vivacious style, this book brings hope.Scholar and activist (not an oxymoron), Judith Stiehm, shares her detailed research into the lives and work of the very few women (12) who have received the Nobel Peace Prize.As a scholar, she inquires about the influence of their social economic status (class, education, race, religion) on their ability to gain international recognition for peace.She finds what they share is not at all their social backgrounds,but rather their goal:recognitionfor justice and peace - not for their personal achievements.

The path they have chosen is hard;all were repeatedly ridiculed;several spent time in jail.In explaining why and how they suffered, Stiehm increases our understanding (p. 33) of William James who argued that working for peace required "the moral equivalent of war" (sacrifice, solidarity, loyalty). In analyzing their difficult journeys, Stiehm finds their voices agreeing that peace cannot come without justice.Several awards make this link quite explicit, for the women did not work directly for peace (Aung San Suu Kyi, 1991:Shirin Ebadi, 2003; Wangari Maathai, 2004). Yet the author teaches us that these winners of a peace prize, from Bertha von Suttner (1905) onward, always linked justice with peace.

Stiehm reveals portraits of the women's lives which show them all quite idealist, but very realist.She offers details about their work to show how they sustained this seeming contradiction. Most important is the analysis of how the women built networks and organizations to empower others, and then often, stepping aside as the work continued.They were not individual heroes;their goals depended on social organization. They would very much agree with a fellow laureate, who protested that too much attention was given to his person:Nelson Mandela had to repeatedly admonish the international press that he did not liberate himself from prison;the organized people did.

On the back cover of the book,Barbara Ehrenreich, asks that you give this book to your daughters.Yes, but for the above reasons, you need to give the book especially to your sons.

The book is highly appropriate for the classroom, from high school to graduate classes. How possible? For the younger students, it will inspire them while showing the sacrifices for peace.For the more analytical, this political theorist raises all the important questions that can be debated:Must a peace maker be a pacifist? What is conscientious non-violence vs. pragmatic nonviolence?How does peace relate to development? What is the interaction between leadership and organizational power?The book shows that each one of us can join the debates, from youth to elders, and begin to commit to peace (time, energy, taxes, honor) more than to war.

Empowered women: the quiet revolution.
As Judith Hicks Stiehm beautifully depicts in this telling of the contributions of 12 women Nobel Peace Laureates, women are creative thinkers and leaders. And as she also points out, war is a phenomenon that is associated with men. As an evolutionary biologist I've written an exploration for why women, as a group, are biologically less inclined to use physical violence to resolve conflicts ("Women, Power, and the Biology of Peace." Judith L. Hand (not Latta)) and why women are better natural negotiators. I also argue in that book and another ("A Future Without War") why it is that the empowerment of women across the globe is the critical catalyst needed to actually put an end to wars. Women in New Zealand were the first given the vote--real political power--roughly 100 years ago. Women are becoming increasingly active in government and conflict negotiations. The women described by Stiehm are the vanguard of a flood of women who will be working to change history in a quiet revolution in exactly the way Nobel hoped would happen. Her book is an inspiration for us all, women and men of good will, because it shows us women from across the globe and all walks of life stepping up and taking their share of the responsibility for how we run our world.

Real Life Inspiration
Since the Nobel Peace Prize was first awarded in 1903, it has been given to only 12 women.Judith Hicks Stiehm presents the life story of each of these remarkable people, women from dramatically different backgrounds all around the globe.The stories, so cleary and compellingly told, are fascinating page-turners in themselves.And together they convey the essential point that anyone, anywhere, can work for peace, doing small things that may in fact add up to big changes to benefit the neighborhood, the locality, the region--even the world.For every reader (woman or man) who's felt disheartened and powerless in recent years, this book is both a roadmap and a real life inspiration--and the perfect gift for any young woman wondering what to do with her life.

Fascinating life stories that show what one person can do: a book for women and men
In CHAMPIONS FOR PEACE Judith Hicks Stiehm has written in lively, highly readable prose the life stories of the twelve women who have won the Nobel Peace Prize.Beyond that, the book dramatizes the effect one person--you, perhaps?--can have.On the last page, she writes:"Each of us has different circumstances and different resources; nevertheless, each of us has the capacity to act." (p. 224)

What is most striking here is the variety in the women's origins and lives.A world map shows that three are from the United States--Jane Addams, Emily Greene Balch, and Jody Williams.From Guatemala, Rigoberta Menchu Tum. Ireland, Betty Williams and Mairead Corrigan. Sweden, Alva Myrdal.Austria, Bertha von Suttner. Iran, Shirin Ebadi. Burma, Aung San Suu Kyi. Macedonia, Mother Teresa. Kenya, Wangari Muta Maathai. As the author tells us:"They have been young, middleaged, and old. They have been of titled nobility, and they have been subsistence farmers. They have held doctorates, and they have also been barely schooled." (p. ix)

What did these women have in common?Stiehm says, "a vision, a commitment to action, and a willingness to persevere in the face of criticism and, in some cases, imprisonment." (p ix)

This book itself has required a strong commitment on the part of the author to do the research and writing it required, and the accomplishment here reflects Stiehm's own extraordinary wisdom and qualifications as a writer, political scientist, and advocate. The preface and conclusion are especially helpful, as is the epilogue with its questions for U. S. readers and non-U.S. readers to think about.

While the life stories are those of women, the book is for and about men also:Stiehm lists the organizations and the men who have won the prize.She touches on the nature of wars and violence, arguing that war is violence done mostly by men to men--and she argues strenuously that the behavior of men must change:"After all, most violence is done by men, and particularly at the direction of governments. . . .This means that it is important to study the psychology and interests of the men who authorize and exercise violence." (p 224)

I'd like to see this important book in every home, every school and public library, in English where that is spoken, and in appropriate translations elsewhere. The book is easy to read and the many photographs of the women add to its appeal and to the understanding it brings. ... Read more

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Western Realism and International Relations ... Read more

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Profiles of nine Nobel Peace Prize winners who fought for peace by resisting violence through words, marches, and protests. ... Read more

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Describes some of the major medical discoveries, such as the cure for tuberculosis and the cause of malaria, made by researchers who were eventually awarded the Nobel Prize for Medicine. ... Read more

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A biography of the woman who used her understanding of chemistry to help develop medicines and who devoted her life to helping others. ... Read more

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At the age of 21, a brilliant and highly eccentric graduate student made a major contribution to game theory: John Nash had discovered an influential theory of rational human behaviour. But ten years later, at the peak of a dazzling mathematical career and soon after his marriage to a physicist, Nash suffered a breakdown. Diagnosed a schizophrenic, he was beset by bizarre delusions, unable to work, and repeatedly incarcerated in mental hospitals. He spent most of the next three decades as a silent, ghost-like figure haunting the Princeton campus. Then, when he was 61 and all but forgotten, a dramatic remission of his illness and the Nobel Prize committee's decision to honour his achievements restored the world to him. His story is told in this book by an author who is intimately familiar with the academic world that Nash has occupied. She wrote it with the backing of Princeton and Nash's friends and colleagues.Amazon.com Review
Stories of famously eccentric Princetonians abound--such asthat of chemist Hubert Alyea, the model for The Absent-MindedProfessor, or Ralph Nader, said to have had his own key to thelibrary as an undergraduate. Or the "Phantom of Fine Hall,"a figure many students had seen shuffling around the corridors of themath and physics building wearing purple sneakers and writingnumerology treatises on the blackboards. The Phantom was John Nash,one of the most brilliant mathematicians of his generation, who hadspiraled into schizophrenia in the 1950s. His most important work hadbeen in game theory, which by the 1980s was underpinning a large partof economics. When the Nobel Prize committee began debating a prizefor game theory, Nash's name inevitably came up--only to be dismissed,since the prize clearly could not go to a madman. But in 1994 Nash, inremission from schizophrenia, shared the Nobel Prize in economics forwork done some 45 years previously.

Economist and journalist SylviaNasar has written a biography of Nash that looks at all sides of hislife. She gives an intelligent, understandable exposition of hismathematical ideas and a picture of schizophrenia that is evocativebut decidedly unromantic. Her story of the machinations behind Nash'sNobel is fascinating and one of very few such accounts available inprint (the CIA could learn a thing or two from the Nobelcommittees). This highly recommended book is indeed "a storyabout the mystery of the human mind, in three acts: genius, madness,reawakening." --Mary Ellen Curtin ... Read more

Customer Reviews (291)

boy, does he look a lot like russell crowe!
It's amazing how much the picture of John Nash on the cover of this excellent biography looks like Russell Crowe! Or is it Russell Crowe who has the beautiful mind? How can someone with a beautiful mind throw a phone at a hotel receptionist?

All kidding aside, this is an enjoyable read. The subject is well known to moviegoers, so they'll be quick to spot the mistakes in this book where it makes up incidents not found in the movie and shamelessly distorts other incidents found in the movie just to make a better-reading book. But that typically happens whenever a writer decides to write a book based on a movie. All journalistic integrity is forgotten in the interests of commercial appeal.

To recapitulate, John Nash was a brilliant mathematician and a sometime a**hole who after publishing some breakthrough papers lost his mind intermittently for several decades, finally finding it again and re-emerging reasonably sane shortly after winning a belated Nobel Prize in Economics for his first big discovery in game theory. This raises interesting questions about the nature of paranoid schizophrenia and its interaction with brilliance. It's fun to speculate about this topic, especially because there are really no hard facts or proven theories so anybody's opinion is about as good as anyone else's. Certainly the author had fun speculating.

For those readers who wish to learn more about Nash's mathematical discoveries there is the "Essential John Nash", which I challenge anyone without a strong background in math to understand any of.

This Book Helped Me to Understand Schizophrenia
This book is an interesting and well-written account of a highly intelligent and creative man who suffered from schizophrenia. Like many people, I first heard of Nash by watching the movie starring Russell Crowe. The movie is true to the basic outline of the biography, but omits or fudges many relevant details. For example, the movie didn't mention Nash's travels to Europe or his divorce. From the movie, one would think that Nash's disorder began at graduate school at Princeton, since that is when he first "sees" his imaginary roommate. This imaginary roommate isn't mentioned in the book.

Although eccentric and strange, Nash didn't suffer his first breakdown until age 30, which is relatively late for schizophrenia. If Nash had developed this disorder when he was 20, no one would have heard of him, and there would be no biography to read. It's important to emphasize this point. For every famous person like Nash, there are thousands of talented people who, due to mental illness, never get a chance to exercise their talents.

What precipitated Nash's initial breakdown? It could have been his marriage that occurred two years before, along with his wife's pregnancy. Stress is known to precipitate psychiatric symptoms, and major life changes like getting married and having a child are significant sources of stress. It could have been a European honeymoon trip that Nash and his wife went on about 6 months prior to his breakdown. There's no way to know for sure.

After his breakdown and initial hospitalization, Nash gave up his tenured position at MIT and headed to Europe, where he would spend the next 9 months, attempting to renounce his U.S. citizenship and become a "world citizen." This behavior exemplifies that the severe mental illnesses are primarily disorders of instability. Who in his right mind would give up a tenured faculty position at MIT? Most normal people crave stability, and there's nothing more stable than a tenured position. Mentally ill people crave the opposite; for them the stability of a tenured position is both frightening and undesirable. Nash's travels are further indications of instability.

After Nash returned to the U.S., he had temporary episodes of sanity alternating with psychotic episodes. With some brief exceptions, he wasn't able to resume his career until he had a remission in his fifties. This remission occurred after having lived a relatively quiet and stable life at Princeton for over ten years. Nash won the Nobel Prize in economics in 1994.

Nasar's biography convinces me that schizophrenia is closer to bipolar disorder than Alzheimer's Disease. Schizophrenia is an episodic disease, characterized by alternating sanity and insanity, of rational thought and delusions. At least in Nash's case, it doesn't appear to be degenerative.

I recommend this book for anyone interested in the biographical details of an eminent man's battle with mental illness.

An inspiring, compelling and, ultimately, beautiful read
This is the book that inspired the film of the same name staring Russell Crow. Whilst elements of the story are similar, anyone coming to the book from the film, as I did, will find a more complex, interesting, and, on occasions, unlikeable Nash than the Hollywood version.

Starting with his early, pre-illness, days, Nash begins as a typically brilliant, temperamental, and eccentric genius. He knew it too with his interpersonal skills making him aloof and arrogant. Although it might have been wonderful to meet the early Nash, it is hard to see how one would have liked him. It seems astonishing, therefore, that anyone would feel romantically attracted to Nash, much less devote their life to his care, but this is exactly what Alicia Nash took on. The terrible effects of paranoid schizophrenia are evident in Nash's decline into alternative realities, which threatened to end his life as much as his career. It is a terrible illness. That Nash was able to recover is perhaps testament to his determination to restart his career as well as the unfailing love of his wife. For me, the title of the book could easily belong to Alicia.

Nasar writes wonderfully well and she conveys the complexity of Nash's thoughts and his decline into illness in extraordinary detail. Occasionally, as with all good biographies, you feel that the characters let you down and Nasar never shies away from telling the whole truth. Whilst her voice is silent through most of the book it is only at the end, when the prejudice against mental illness comes to the fore, that Nasar allows her own distaste of such bias to surface. It forms a fitting conclusion to this monumental work.

Good reading
I bought this book after watched the movie based on the same book.

I like movies based on academic settings.

The book arrived on time and in good shape.

not like the movie at all
Nasar is a good writer and she's obviously done her research.My problem was with the subject matter.In this book John Nash comes across as boring, creepy, and a bit of a jerk.Not the kind of person I care to read about. ... Read more

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(Joseph Henry Press) Examines the lives of 15 women who have won Nobel prizes or contributed to a Nobel prize-winning project, exploring the reasons for the disparity in the number of women being awarded the coveted and honored award. Takes a fresh perspective on the history of science through the lives of gifted female scientists. Softcover. DLC: Women scientists--Awards. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

A great book !
This is a wonderful book, a must read !
It tells about the women passionate for science, their struggle and achievements.

case studies in discrimination
McGrayne chronicles the discrimination faced by female scientists in the 20th century. Even by those who would eventually achieve the highest prize of the Nobel. She also includes biographies of a few women who never won the Nobel, but were acknowledged later by many to have merited it. Lise Meitner, of course. She was doubly disadvantaged. Being female and Jewish in Germany during the 1920s and 30s. The story of how Otto Hahn won the Physics Nobel shortly after World War 2 for work that he did jointly with her is well known to physicists.

Jocelyn Bell's work on pulsars is also described. Bell's advisor would later garner the Nobel for this, though Bell made the crucial observations and deductions from those.

Both these chapters can be exercises in frustration to a reader. Injustices that were never remedied. Though Bell is still alive, and so there is a chance that the Nobel committe might redress this oversight.

Great book
I found this book really excellent--I was coming at it from being a female scientist (chemist) myself.Good from beginning to end....no complaints!

stories of women who loved science
Why so few? This is the question which the author put on the first page of the book. More than 300 scientists have won the Nobel Prize since its establishment,however, only 10 of them are women.Why? Why have so few women won the Nobel Prize in science? Some people might say this small number could be evidence for old prejudices. But the author tried to find a different answer through this book.This book contains stories of 15 women scientists who won the Nobel Prize or had a critical role in Nobel Prize winning works. Although this book takes the style of a biography and also describes all the scientific details quite well, it is neither just a biography nor just a science book for general readers. It is more than both of them. These women scientists had gone through lots of difficulties. All of them had experiences of being rejected from the opportunity of receiving a higher education. Most of them had more than once been mistreated and disregarded of their abilities as well as their works. And some of them, such as Rosalind Franklin, still have not received the full credit which she deserves.One might say that all the scientists who did remarkable works had faced and overcome many kinds of difficulties. But these women had to carry the added burden of being "women scientists". So, as the author pointed, another question should arise when the book is finished. Why so many? Why have so many women challenged themselves with such difficult works in spite of all the obstacles? The answer is simple. They loved science.And, through this book, the readers will find a love and a understanding for these fearless women as well as their lover,science.

Liberation in Hour-Long Chapters
Nobel Prize Women in Science is a superb collection of hour-longbiographies of women who either won a Nobel Prize or worked on a projectthat won a Nobel Prize in science.The biographies are full of memorablevignettes and quotes and lucid explanations of the scientific discoveries. This reader found the book liberating because it debunked so many myths shehad had about good scientists.This book makes great bedtime reading andexcellent gifts for both men and women. ... Read more

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"To benefit humanity"—an ironic epitaph for the man who patented dynamite, yet none fits him better. A reclusive and somewhat eccentric millionaire, Alfred Nobel was nevertheless known for his willingness to help others. A recipient of the Letterstedt Prize for his contributions to scientific knowledge, Nobel wanted late in life to endow a similar series of prizes. So he willed his 10 million dollar estate and the interest from all his investments to the establishment of five annual Nobel Prizes, the most prestigious awarded for contributions to a lasting peace.

From Bertha von Suttner (1905) to Wangari Maathai (2004), this work provides a detailed look at the lives and accomplishments of 12 female recipients of the Nobel Peace Prize, with emphasis on the work that earned each the Nobel. Hailing from various nations and walks of life, the winners include Jane Addams, Mother Teresa, Alva Reimer Myrdal, Jody Williams and Shirin Ebadi. An appendix contains the complete list of Nobel Peace Prize winners from 1901 to 2004. ... Read more

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Biographies of eight women who have won the Nobel Prize, with an introduction to Alfred Nobel and the prize and a complete listing of female winners. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

I am the author
I am the author of this book.The rights have reverted to me. Is anyone interested in publishing a revised edition?If so contact me at gumtree68@hotmail.com ... Read more