The invention made Alfred Nobel famous. Nobel Alfred: biography, personal life, inventions, interesting facts. Love for books

Alfred Nobel, talented Swedish inventor. Photo: Wikipedia

On October 21, 1833, the phenomenon of experimental chemistry was born, academician without formal education, Ph.D., founder of the Alfred Nobel Prize Foundation.

A talented Swedish inventor who spent most of his life in Russia "blew up" the world community with the invention of dynamite. In 1863, he patented in Sweden the use of nitroglycerin in technology - for the first time after eight hundred years of the domination of black powder, civilization received a new explosive! Soon - patents for a detonator, dynamite ...

Alfred Nobel wanted to see the application of his scientific developments exclusively in civilian life. Paradoxically, he created explosives at the same time. They were taken into service by the army. But creative projects with the help of his explosives rapidly changed the world: rapid development of rocks for the extraction of ores, coal, oil and gas, tunneling, and later rocket flights became possible. So the dynamite invented by Nobel was in demand all over the world, and its creator became incredibly rich in a few years. Although Alfred Nobel, being an ascetic in everyday life, spent a lot of money on the development of science, by the end of his life he had 31 million crowns, which he donated to the creation of the Nobel Prize.

The great Swede was not deprived of a peculiar sense of humor. For example, in the last years of his life, he was especially tormented by heart pains, and he remarked about his treatment: "Isn't it ironic that I was prescribed to take nitroglycerin! Doctors call it trinitrin so as not to scare off pharmacists and patients."

Alfred Nobel was not an exceptional case in his family - his father Immanuel, an architect, builder, entrepreneur, became famous for his inventions in various fields, and his brothers Robert and Ludwig radically re-equipped and developed the oil industry. Alfred himself filed 355 patents, including the right to design a gas burner, water meter, barometer, refrigeration apparatus, and an improved method for producing sulfuric acid. Alfred Nobel was a member of the Swedish Academy of Sciences, the Royal Society of London and the Paris Society of Civil Engineers.

Alfred was born in Stockholm, and from the age of 8 he lived with his family in St. Petersburg, therefore he considered Russia his second homeland. He spoke Swedish, Russian, English, German, Italian. A man of high education and a phenomenal mind, Alfred Nobel officially had no education, not even a high school level. After self-education at home, the father sent the young Alfred on an educational journey through the Old and New Worlds. There he met with prominent scientists and became infected with invention.

Returning home, he began to actively study nitroglycerin. At that time, many people died from the inept handling of this hellish "oil". The tragedy also happened to the Nobels - during the experiment, an explosion occurred and swept away eight people along with the laboratory. Among the dead was a twenty-year-old boy, the younger brother of the Nobels - Emil-Oskar. Their father was paralyzed and died eight years later.

The Nobel brothers continued to engage in science and industry. They all invested in the development of science. Especially generous - Alfred. Even for workers at his enterprises, he created comfortable living and working conditions - he built houses, schools and hospitals, where courtyards were decorated with fountains and flower beds; to the work of employees carried free transport. On the use of his inventions by the military, he said: "For my part, I wish that all guns with all their accessories and servants could be sent to hell, that is, to the most proper place for them." Alfred Nobel provided funds for holding congresses in defense of peace. On December 10, 1896, a brain hemorrhage ended his life, it happened in the Italian town of San Remo.

Among the 355 patented inventions of Alfred Nobel were more and less significant for the development of mankind. But five of them are an undoubted breakthrough in science, fundamental innovations in practical use.

1. In 1864, Alfred Nobel created a series of ten blasting caps. They differed little from each other, but the detonator cap No. 8 found the widest application, which is how it is still called, although there is no other numbering. Detonators are needed to detonate the charge. The fact is that the charges react poorly to other influences, but they pick up even a tiny explosion near them well. And the detonator is created in such a way that it reacts to an insignificant impact - a flame or even a spark, friction, impact. The detonator easily "picks up" the condition for the explosion and brings it to the charge.

2. In 1867, Alfred Nobel curbed uncontrolled nitroglycerin and got dynamite. To do this, he mixed volatile nitroglycerin with diatomaceous earth, a porous rock also called mountain flour and diatomaceous earth. It occurs in abundance at the bottom of reservoirs, so the material is available and cheap, but completely pacified the explosive nitroglycerin. The paste-like substance can be molded and transported - it does not explode without a detonator, even from shaking and arson. Its power is slightly lower than nitroglycerin, it is still 5 times more powerful than its predecessor explosive - black powder. For the first time, dynamite was used in the United States when laying the Pacific Railroad. Now the compositions of dynamites are different. They are little used in military affairs, often in the mining industry and for tunneling.

3. In 1876, Alfred Nobel obtained an explosive jelly by combining nitroglycerin and kolodium. A mixture of two explosives gave rise to a super-explosive, superior in power to dynamite. This is a jelly-like transparent substance, therefore the first names were - explosive jelly, dynamite gelatin. To modern chemists, the substance is known as gelignite. Kolodiy is a thick liquid, a solution of pyroxylin (nitrocellulose) in a mixture of ether and alcohol. And after testing the combination of nitroglycerin with kolodium, experiments with the combination of nitroglycerin with potassium nitrate, with wood pulp, followed. In modern production, fulminate jelly is usually used as an intermediate raw material for the preparation of other explosives - ammonium nitrate and gelatin dinamites.

4. The filing of a patent for ballistite by Alfred Nobel in 1887 turned into a scandal. This is one of the first nitroglycerin smokeless powders, it consists of powerful explosives - nitrocellulose and nitroglycerin. Ballistites have been used to this day - they are used in mortars, artillery pieces, and also as solid rocket fuel, if a little aluminum or magnesium powder is added to them to increase the heat of combustion. But ballistite also has a "descendant" - cordite. The difference in composition is minimal and the cooking methods are almost identical. Nobel assured that the description of the production of ballistite also included a description of the production of cordite. But other scientists, Abel and Dewar, indicated a variety of a substance with a volatile solvent that was more convenient for the production of cordite, and the right to invent cordite was assigned to them by the court. The final products, ballistite and cordite, have a lot in common in properties.

5. In 1878, Alfred Nobel, working for a family oil company, invented the oil pipeline - a method of continuous transportation of a liquid product. It was built, like everything progressive, also with a scandal, because the oil pipeline, although it reduced the cost of production by 7 times, but unprecedentedly reduced the jobs of oil carriers in barrels. The construction of the Nobel oil pipeline was completed in 1908, and it was dismantled not so long ago, that is, it served for more than a hundred years! And when its construction was started, oil production was in its infancy - the product flowed by gravity from wells to earthen pits. From the pits, it was scooped out in buckets into barrels, which were taken on carts to sailboats, then along the Caspian Sea and the Volga to Nizhny Novgorod, and from there - throughout Russia. Ludwig Nobel put steel tanks instead of pits, invented the cistern and the tanker, which still serve the industrialists. According to the ideas of his brother Alfred, he built steam pumps, applied new methods of chemical oil refining. The product has become of excellent quality, the best in the world, indeed - "black gold".

Alfred Nobel(full name - Alfred Bernhard Nobel) - a famous Swedish chemist, inventor and engineer. Founder of the Nobel Prize. One of his main inventions was dynamite, which allowed Alfred to earn a huge fortune.

Nobel family

Alfred Bernhard Nobel was born in Stockholm October 21, 1833. His father - Emmanuel Nobel, mother- Andriette Nobel. He was the third son in a family of only 8 children.

However, only four of them survived - Alfred, Robert, Ludwig and Emil Nobel. Emil later died at one of the family factories.

Study period

At 9 years old Alfred arrives in St. Petersburg. At that time, Emmanuel, his father, was engaged in the production of steam units in the Russian Empire. The boy had to study, and he was assigned to a private school, where he studied until the age of 17.

The favorite subjects of the young Nobel were physics and chemistry, which determined his future fate. In his free time, he was in his father's firm, delving into its essence.

In 1949 father, on the recommendation of the Russian scientist-chemist N.N. Zinina, sends his son to study in depth physics and chemistry in Germany. Then Alfred Nobel left for Paris. After that, he trained and worked in America at a factory John Erickson- Renowned inventor. There he studied the features of the manufacture of steam units: for cars and ships.

Return to family business

In 1853 Alfred Nobel returned to St. Petersburg. He began working for his father's company, whose main activity at that time was the production of ammunition. It was in this year that the Crimean War began, which lasted until 1856.

During the war, the demand for Nobel Sr.'s products was high, and the company prospered. However, after the war, things did not go well in the family business: Russia did not need ammunition, and parts for steamships were extremely rarely required. Therefore, the Nobel family decided return to their homeland - to Stockholm.

Discovery of dynamite

In his native lands, Alfred continued to do science in a laboratory that his father built especially for him. The experiments were based domestication of nitroglycerin opened in 1842. Alfred tried to control this dangerous substance by conducting various experiments.

He managed to make a capsule filled with mercury - this is how the detonator turned out. And the most important discovery of his life was invention of dynamite. He got it by combining nitroglycerin with other substances. In 1867, dynamite was patented by Alfred Nobel.

Immediately after that, Alfred offered the Swedish railroad his invention, which could help in punching tunnels. Since the landscape of Sweden is rocky, the proposal was accepted "To cheer" and greatly accelerated the construction of railways.

Big success

First practice using dynamite made this stuff popular. Its further use was carried out in a variety of industries and for a variety of purposes:

• Under the highest mountain of the Alps - Mont Blanc - a tunnel was laid, with a length of 11,600 meters.
• Laying the Corinth Canal in Greece.
• Removal of underwater rocks in the navigable rivers of New York.
• The bed of the Danube was cleared.

Immediately, dynamite factories began to grow in Europe and America. This began to bring huge profits to Alfred Nobel, who owned one-fifth of all explosives production.

Second invention

In 1873, Alfred left for the French capital, Paris. There he continued his scientific and inventive activities. As a result of labors and experiments, his second miracle was born - smokeless powder, called "ballistite".

In the late 80s, Nobel patents this invention and sells his patent to the Italian government without hesitation. This fact upset the leadership of France, and in 1891 Alfred had to leave Paris. He moved to Italy and settled in the city of San Remo.

Personal life of Alfred Nobel

What is known about the personal life of Alfred Nobel is that he never been married. He lived as a hermit and devoted himself entirely to his beloved science, engineering, invention.

Nobel was fluent in several languages: French, Russian, English and German. He strove for peace and himself never wanted to become famous. Therefore, at the end of his days, Nobel devoted all his time to his laboratory in the Italian Riviera, built under an orange grove.

In recent months, he felt very tired, he developed angina pectoris, he was tormented by constant pain in the region of the heart.

December 10, 1896 year, at the age of 63, Alfred Nobel died of a cerebral hemorrhage. He was buried in his homeland - in Stockholm.

Nobel Prize

In 1888 a French reporter published in the newspaper the news of the death of Alfred Nobel by mistake. In fact, one of his brothers, Ludwig, died that year. Seeing an article in a newspaper about himself, as journalists wrote about him - "Blood Millionaire", "dynamite king", "merchant of death" Alfred was very impressed.

He was a pacifist by nature and did not want to remain in the memory of mankind as a villain on a global scale. That is why November 27, 1895 he wrote his will:

“I, the undersigned, Alfred Bernhard Nobel, having considered and decided, hereby declare my will in respect of the property acquired by me ... brought the greatest benefit to humanity.

The indicated percentages should be divided into five equal parts, which are intended: the first part to the one who made the most important discovery or invention in the field of physics, the second - in the field of chemistry, the third - in the field of physiology or medicine, the fourth - to the one who created the most significant literary work reflecting human ideals, the fifth - to someone who will make a significant contribution to the rallying of peoples, the destruction of slavery, the reduction in the number of existing armies and the promotion of a peace agreement.

…My special desire is that the awarding of prizes should not be influenced by the nationality of the candidate, so that the most deserving ones will receive the prize, regardless of whether they are Scandinavians or not.”.

Swedish chemical engineer, entrepreneur, founder of the famous awards Alfred Bernhard Nobel was born on October 21, 1833 in Stockholm. His father, Immanuel Nobel, was an engineer and inventor. In 1837, due to financial problems, he moved to Finland and then to Russia, settling in St. Petersburg.
Alfred's mother, Andriette Nobel, remained in Stockholm to take care of the family, which at that time had two more children besides Alfred - Robert and Ludwig.

In Russia, Emmanuel Nobel proposed to Tsar Nicholas I a new design of sea mines. After the tests, the Russian government allocated money to Nobel for the development of the case. Soon he received permission to establish a foundry for the production of weapons. The Nobel plant produced machines for the production of cart wheels, the first systems in Russia for heating houses with hot water. In 1853, Emmanuel received the Imperial Gold Medal for equipping 11 warships with steam engines made by him.

In October 1842, Andrietta and her children came to her husband, and a year later another son, Emil, appeared in their family.

The four Nobel brothers received a first-class home education with the help of visiting teachers. Children were engaged in natural sciences, studied languages ​​and literature. At the age of 17, Alfred could speak and write in Swedish, Russian, French, English and German.

In 1850, his father sent Alfred on a trip to France, Italy, Germany and the United States. In Paris, for a year, the young man worked in the laboratory of the famous chemist Theophile Jules Pelouse, who in 1836 established the composition of glycerin. Ascanio Sobrero worked in his laboratory from 1840 to 1843, who first obtained nitroglycerin.

In 1852, Alfred returned to St. Petersburg and continued to work at his father's enterprise.

After the defeat of Russia in the Crimean War, Nobel lost military orders, and his enterprise went bankrupt. In 1859 he returned to Sweden with his wife and Emil. Robert moved to Finland, Ludwig very successfully liquidated his father's plant and founded his own plant, Ludwig Nobel, which would later be called Russian Diesel. Alfred Nobel worked for the famous chemist Nikolai Zinin, who, since 1853, had been experimenting with nitroglycerin (together with his student Vasily Petrushevsky). In May 1862, Alfred Nobel began his first independent experiments with this substance, and in 1863 he made an underwater explosion in the suburbs of St. Petersburg, using a fuse invented by him, later called "Nobel". An attempt to patent a method of using nitroglycerin as an explosive in the Main Engineering Directorate of St. Petersburg ended in failure, and Nobel went to his parents in Stockholm. Here he engaged in further experiments with nitroglycerin and in October 1864 received a patent in Sweden for the production of an explosive mixture and his fuse. At the same time, together with his father and brothers, he began the construction of two factories for the production of nitroglycerin. However, soon there was a powerful explosion on one of them, located in Heleborg, as a result of which Alfred's younger brother, Emil, died.

Accidents while working with nitroglycerin occurred more and more often, and the Swedish government imposed a ban on its production. To avoid bankruptcy, Nobel undertook an intensive search for ways to reduce the explosiveness of nitroglycerin. In 1866, he discovered that the power of nitroglycerin stabilizes diatomaceous earth, a finely porous sedimentary rock composed of the siliceous skeletons of unicellular marine organisms, diatoms. He mixed nitroglycerin with diatomaceous earth and in 1867 received a patent for his discovery, dynamite.

Interest in dynamite was exceptionally great, and the construction of factories for its production began in a number of countries. Some of them were built by Nobel himself; others purchased a license to use his patents. During this period, the Swedish engineer and inventor proved himself to be an outstanding entrepreneur and a good financier. At the same time, he continued his research in the field of chemistry and created new, even more effective explosives. In 1887, after numerous experiments, he received a smokeless nitroglycerin gunpowder - ballistite. The products of Nobel's dynamite factories quickly conquered the international market and brought in huge profits. At the same time, Nobel himself was an ardent pacifist and maintained ties with some public figures of the late 19th century who were preparing the Congress for Peace.

On March 14, 1893, Nobel made a will in which he disposed of the main part of the inheritance after the payment of debts and taxes, as well as deducting the share and gift bequeathed to the heirs in the amount of 1% of the Austrian Peace League and 5% of Stockholm University, the Stockholm Hospital and the Karolinska Medical Institute, hand over to the Royal Academy of Sciences. This amount was intended "to form a fund, the proceeds of which will be distributed annually by the Academy as a reward for the most important and original discoveries or intellectual achievements in a wide field of knowledge and progress." On November 27, 1895, Nobel wrote a second will, canceling the first. The new text of the will stated that his entire fortune should be turned into money, which should be invested in reliable shares and other securities - they form a fund. The annual income from this fund shall be divided into five parts and distributed as follows: one part is given for the largest discovery in the field of physics, the second for the largest discovery or invention in the field of chemistry, the third for discoveries in the field of physiology and medicine, the remaining two parts are intended to reward individuals who have achieved success in the field of literature or the peace movement.

December 7, 1896 Nobel suffered a cerebral hemorrhage, and December 10, 1896 died in San Remo (Italy). He was buried at the Norra cemetery in Stockholm.
Nobel's second will was opened in January 1897. After completing all the formalities, Nobel's idea became a reality: on June 29, 1900, the foundation's charter was approved by the Swedish Parliament. The first Nobel Prizes were awarded in 1901.

During his life, Nobel patented 355 inventions in various countries. Nobel's companies were located in about 20 countries, and various explosives were produced according to his patents in 100 factories around the world.

Nobel lived and worked in many countries, including Sweden, Russia, France, Great Britain, Germany and Italy. He was passionate about literature and wrote poetry and plays. In his youth, he seriously hesitated, deciding whether to become an inventor or a poet, and shortly before his death he wrote the tragedy Nemesis.

The material was prepared on the basis of information from RIA Novosti and open sources

Academician, experimental chemist, Doctor of Philosophy, academician, founder of the Nobel Prize, which made him world famous.

Childhood

Alfred Nobel, whose biography is of sincere interest to the modern generation, was born in Stockholm on October 21, 1833. He was a native of the peasants of the Swedish southern district of Nobelef, which became a derivative of a surname known throughout the world. In the family, besides him, there were three more sons.

Father Immanuel Nobel was an entrepreneur who, having gone bankrupt, dared to try his luck in Russia. He moved in 1837 to St. Petersburg, where he opened workshops. After 5 years, when things went smoothly, he moved his family to him.

The first experiments of the Swedish chemist

Once in Russia, 9-year-old Nobel Alfred quickly mastered the Russian language, in addition to which he was fluent in English, Italian, German and French. The boy received his education at home. In 1849, his father sent him on a two-year journey through America and Europe. Alfred visited Italy, Denmark, Germany, France, America, but the young man spent most of his time in Paris. There he took a practical course in physics and chemistry in the laboratory of the famous scientist Jules Peluz, who explored oil and discovered nitriles.

Meanwhile, the affairs of Immanuel Nobel, a talented self-taught inventor, improved: he became rich and famous in the Russian service, especially during the Crimean War. His plant produced mines used in the defense of the Finnish Kronstadt and the harbor of Revel in Estonia. The merits of Nobel Sr. were encouraged by the imperial medal, which, as a rule, was not awarded to foreigners.

After the end of the war, orders ceased, the enterprise was idle, many workers were left out of work. This forced Immanuel Nobel to return back to Stockholm.

The first experiments of Alfred Nobel

Alfred, who was in close contact with the famous Nikolai Zinin, meanwhile came to grips with the study of the properties of nitroglycerin. In 1863, the young man returned to Sweden, where he continued his experiments. On September 3, 1864, a terrible tragedy occurred: during the experiments, during the explosion of 100 kilograms of nitroglycerin, several people died, among whom was 20-year-old Emil, Alfred's younger brother. After the incident, Alfred's father was paralyzed, and for the last 8 years he remained bedridden. During this period, Immanuel continued to work actively: he wrote 3 books, for which he himself made illustrations. In 1870, he was excited about the use of waste from the woodworking industry, and Nobel Sr. invented plywood, inventing a method of gluing using a pair of wooden plates.

Invention of dynamite

On October 14, 1864, a Swedish scientist took out a patent allowing him to manufacture an explosive containing nitroglycerin. Alfred Nobel invented dynamite in 1867; its production later brought the scientist the main wealth. The press of that time wrote that the Swedish chemist made his discovery by accident: as if a bottle of nitroglycerin had broken during transportation. The liquid spilled, soaked the soil, resulting in the formation of dynamite. Alfred Nobel did not recognize the above version and insisted that he was deliberately looking for a substance that, when mixed with nitroglycerin, would reduce the explosiveness. The desired neutralizer was diatomaceous earth - a rock also called tripoli.

The Swedish chemist organized a laboratory for the production of dynamite in the middle of a lake on a barge, far from populated areas.

Two months after the start of the floating laboratory, Alfred's aunt brought him together with a merchant from Stockholm, Johan Wilhelm Smith, the owner of a million dollar fortune. Nobel was able to convince Smith and several other investors to unite and form an enterprise for the industrial production of nitroglycerin, which began in 1865. Realizing that the Swedish patent would not protect his rights abroad, Nobel patented his own rights to sell it around the world.

Discoveries of Alfred Nobel

In 1876, the world learned about a new invention of a scientist - an "explosive mixture" - a compound of nitroglycerin with collodion, which had a stronger explosive. The following years are rich in discoveries of the combination of nitroglycerin with other substances: ballistite - the first smokeless powder, then cordite.

Nobel's interests were not limited to working with explosives: the scientist was fond of optics, electrochemistry, medicine, biology, designed safe steam boilers and automatic brakes, tried to make artificial rubber, studied nitrocellulose and There are about 350 patents for which Alfred Nobel claimed rights: dynamite, detonator, smokeless powder, water meter, refrigeration apparatus, barometer, military rocket design, gas burner,

Characteristics of a scientist

Nobel Alfred was one of the most educated people of his time. The scientist read a large number of books on technology, medicine, philosophy, history, fiction, giving preference to his contemporaries: Hugo, Turgenev, Balzac and Maupassant, he even tried to write. The bulk of the works of Alfred Nobel (novels, plays, poems) was never published. Only the play about Beatrice Cenci - "Nemisis" has survived, completed already at death. This tragedy in 4 acts was met with hostility by the churchmen. Therefore, the entire published edition, published in 1896, was destroyed after the death of Alfred Nobel, with the exception of three copies. The world had the opportunity to get acquainted with this wonderful work in 2005; it was played in memory of the great scientist on the Stockholm stage.

Contemporaries describe Alfred Nobel as a gloomy man who preferred calm loneliness and constant immersion in work to city bustle and cheerful companies. The scientist led a healthy lifestyle, had a negative attitude towards smoking, alcohol and gambling.

Being quite wealthy, Nobel downright gravitated towards the Spartan lifestyle. Working on explosive mixtures and substances, he was an opponent of violence and murder, doing colossal work in the name of peace on the planet.

Inventions for Peace

Initially, the explosives created by the Swedish chemist were used for peaceful purposes: for laying roads and railways, mining, building canals and tunnels (using blasting). For military purposes, Nobel explosives began to be used only in the Franco-Prussian war of 1870-1871.

The scientist himself dreamed of inventing a substance or a machine that had a destructive power that made any war impossible. Nobel paid for the holding of congresses dedicated to the issues of peace on the planet, and he himself took part in them. The scientist was a member of the Paris Society of Civil Engineers, the Swedish Academy of Sciences, and the Royal Society of London. He had many awards, which he treated very indifferently.

Alfred Nobel: personal life

The great inventor - an attractive man - was never married and had no children. Closed, lonely, distrustful of people, he decided to find himself an assistant secretary and placed an ad in the newspaper. The 33-year-old Countess Berta Sofia Felicita responded - an educated, well-mannered, multilingual girl who was a dowry. She wrote to Nobel, received an answer from him; A correspondence ensued, which aroused mutual sympathy on both sides. Soon there was a meeting between Albert and Bertha; young people walked a lot, talked, and conversations with Nobel gave Bertha great pleasure.

Soon Albert left on business, but Berta could not wait for him and returned home, where Count Arthur von Suttner was waiting for her - the sympathy and love of her life, with whom she started a family. Despite the fact that Bertha's departure was a huge blow for Alfred, their warm friendly correspondence continued until the end of Nobel's days.

Alfred Nobel and Sophie Hess

And yet in the life of Alfred Nobel there was love. At the age of 43, the scientist fell in love with 20-year-old Sophie Hess, a flower shop saleswoman, moved her from Vienna to Paris, rented an apartment near the house and allowed her to spend as much as she wanted. Sophie was only interested in money. Beautiful and graceful "Madame Nobel" (as she called herself), unfortunately, was a lazy person without any education. She refused to study with the teachers whom Nobel hired for her.

The connection between the scientist and Sophie Hess lasted 15 years, until 1891 - the moment when Sophie gave birth to a child from a Hungarian officer. Alfred Nobel peacefully parted with his young girlfriend and even assigned her a very decent allowance. Sophie married the father of her daughter, but all the time she annoyed Alfred with requests for an increase in content, after his death she began to insist on this, threatening to publish his intimate letters if she refused. The executors, who did not want the name of their principal to be fluffed up in the newspapers, made concessions: they bought Nobel's letters and telegrams from Sophie and increased her rent.

From childhood, Nobel Alfred was characterized by poor health and was constantly ill; in recent years, he was tormented by heart pains. Doctors prescribed nitroglycerin to the scientist - this circumstance (a kind of irony of fate) amused Alfred, who devoted his life to working with this substance. Alfred Nobel died on December 10, 1896 at his villa in Sanremo from a cerebral hemorrhage. The grave of the great scientist is located in the Stockholm cemetery.

Alfred Nobel and his prize

When inventing dynamite, Nobel saw its use in aiding human progress, not in murderous wars. But the persecution that began about such a dangerous discovery prompted Nobel to think that another, more significant trace should be left behind. So, the Swedish inventor decided to establish a nominal prize after his death, writing a will in 1895, according to which the main part of the acquired fortune - 31 million crowns - goes to a specially created fund. Returns from investments should be distributed every year in the form of bonuses to people who have brought the greatest benefit to mankind during the previous year. The interest is divided into 5 parts and is intended for a scientist who has made an important discovery in the field of chemistry, physics, literature, medicine and physiology, and who has also made a significant contribution to maintaining peace on the planet.

A special wish of Alfred Nobel was not to take into account the nationality of the candidates.

The Alfred Nobel Prize was first awarded in 1901 to the physicist Roentgen Konrad for the discovery of the rays that bear his name. The Nobel Prizes, which are the most authoritative and honorable international awards, have had a huge impact on the development of world science and literature.

Also in the scientific history of Alfred Nobel, whose testament struck many scientists with his generosity, entered as the discoverer of "nobelium" - a chemical element named after him. The name of the outstanding scientist is given to the Stockholm Institute of Physics and Technology and Dnepropetrovsk University.

Born in the family of an inventor, Alfred Nobel devoted his whole life to his only love - working on a substance that would prevent all wars in the world. A fanatical commitment to explosives played a cruel joke on him, but it was his fatal mistake that became the motivation - to establish an award for the greatest achievements in science and art.

Family and childhood

Alfred Nobel was born in the family of a gifted inventor and mechanic Emmanuel, and was the third child of eight born. Unfortunately, of all the children in the family, only four survived - in addition to Alfred, three of his brothers.

In the year when the future famous chemist was born, his parents' house burned to the ground. Over time, some symbolism will be seen in this - after all, fire and explosions will become part of Nobel's life.

After the fire, the family had to move to a much smaller house on the outskirts of Stockholm. And the father began to look for work in order to somehow feed his large family. But he did it with difficulty. Therefore, in 1837, he fled the country to save himself from creditors. First, he went to the Finnish city of Turku, then moved to St. Petersburg. At that time he was working on his new project - explosive mines.

While his father was looking for happiness abroad, three children and his mother were waiting for him at home, barely making ends meet. But five years later, Emmanuel called his family to Russia - the authorities appreciated his invention and offered to work on the project further. Emmanuel moved his wife and children to St. Petersburg - out of dire need, the family suddenly falls into the upper strata of society. And Emmanuel's children have a chance to get a good education. At 17, Alfred could boast of knowing five languages: Russian, Swedish, German, English and French.

Despite his good knowledge of technology and engineering, Alfred was also very interested in literature. But the father was not very happy when his son announced his desire to devote his life to writing. Therefore, the father goes to the trick: he gives his son the opportunity to go on an expedition around the world, but in return he forever forgets about literature. The young man could not resist the temptation of travel and went to Europe, and then to America. But, even having made a promise to his father, Alfred could not abandon literature forever: secretly, he continues to write poetry. Although the courage to publish them, he still lacks. Over time, he will burn everything written, showing readers only his only work - the play "Nemesis", which he wrote almost at death.

In the meantime, things are going well for Father Alfred - during the Crimean War, his inventions were very useful to the Russian government. Therefore, he was finally able to get rid of long-standing debts in Sweden. Alfred later refined his experiments with explosives, making a career in this area.

Alfred and explosives

While traveling in Italy, Alfred met the chemist Ascanio Sobrero. The main development of his life was nitroglycerin - an explosive substance. Although the researcher himself did not fully understand where it could be applied, Alfred immediately appreciated the novelty - in 1860 he wrote in his diary that he was "working on a new project and had already achieved very great success in experiments with nitroglycerin."

After the end of the Crimean War, the need for explosives in the Russian Empire decreased, and Emmanuel's affairs again went badly. He returned to Sweden with his family, soon came to Alfred, who continued his experiments on a new invention - dynamite.

In 1864, an explosion occurred at the Nobel factory - 140 kg of nitroglycerin detonated. As a result of the accident, five workers died, among them was Alfred's younger brother Emil.

The Stockholm authorities forbade Alfred to continue to experiment in the city, so he had to move the workshop to the shore of Lake Malaren. There he worked on an old barge, trying to figure out how to make nitroglycerin explode when needed. After some time, he achieved a result: nitroglycerin was now absorbed into another substance, while the mixture became solid and no longer exploded by itself. So Alfred Nobel invented dynamite, in addition, he developed the detonator.

In 1867, he officially patented his development, becoming the sole copyright holder for the production of dynamite.

In 1871, Nobel moved to Paris, where he wrote his only play, Nemesis. But almost the entire circulation was destroyed - the church decided that the drama was blasphemous. Only three copies survived, on the basis of which the play was staged in 1896.

For the first time after that, the play was published only 100 years later - in 2003 in Sweden, and two years later they made a premiere in one of the theaters in Stockholm.

"King of Dynamite"

In 1889, another brother of Alfred, Ludwik, died. But the reporters were mistaken and decided that the researcher himself had died, so they “buried him alive”, publishing an obituary in which Nobel was called “a millionaire who made a fortune on blood” and “death merchant”. These articles unpleasantly struck the scientist, because in fact he had a completely different motivation when he invented dynamite. He was an idealist and wanted to create a weapon whose destructive power alone would not give people even thoughts of conquering other countries.

Since he was already very famous and rich, he began to donate a lot to charity, especially sponsoring those organizations that were engaged in promoting peace.

But after those articles, Nobel became more withdrawn and rarely left the house or his laboratories.

In 1893 he was given an honorary doctorate from the Swedish University of Uppsala.

While living in France, he continued his experiments: he developed the so-called "Nobel lighters" that would help to remotely ignite the detonators. But the French authorities were not interested in the development. Unlike Italy. As a result of the scandal, Alfred was accused of treason and he had to leave France - he moved to Italy and settled in the town of San Remo.

On December 10, 1896, Nobel died at his villa from a cerebral hemorrhage. He was buried in his native Stockholm at the Norra Begravningsplatsen cemetery.

Nobel Prize

In his will, the "dynamite king" indicated that all his property should go to charity. Its 93 factories produced about 66.3 thousand tons of explosives per year. He invested huge amounts in various projects during his lifetime. In total, it was about 31 million Swedish marks.

Nobel ordered all his property to be turned into capital and securities - from them to form a fund, the profit from which every year should be divided between the most prominent scientists of the outgoing year.

The money was to be awarded to scientists in three categories of science: chemistry, physics, medicine and physiology, as well as in the field of literature (Nobel emphasized that it must be idealistic literature), and activities for the good of the world. Five years after the death of the scientist, the courts dragged on - after all, the general condition was estimated at almost $ 1 billion.

The first Nobel Prize ceremony was held in 1901.

• Alfred Nobel in his will did not indicate the need to issue a prize for achievements in the field of economic sciences. The Nobel Prize in Economics was established by the Bank of Sweden only in 1969.
• There is an opinion that Alfred Nobel did not include mathematics in the list of disciplines of his prize due to the fact that his wife cheated on him with a mathematician. In fact, Nobel never married. The real reason for ignoring mathematics by Nobel is unknown, but there are several suggestions. For example, at that time there was already a prize in mathematics from the Swedish king. Another is that mathematicians do not make important inventions for humanity, since this science is purely theoretical.
• The synthesized chemical element nobelium with atomic number 102 is named after Nobel;
• In honor of A. Nobel, the asteroid (6032) Nobel, discovered by astronomer Lyudmila Karachkina at the Crimean Astrophysical Observatory on August 4, 1983, is named.