Nobel Laureates - Harvard University
Source: https://www.harvard.edu/about/history/nobel-laureates
Archived: 2026-04-23 17:11
Nobel Laureates - Harvard University
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Harvard’s Nobel Laureates
Established in 1895 by the Swedish chemist and inventor of dynamite Alfred Bernhard Nobel, the Nobel Prize is an annual award acknowledging outstanding contributions to physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature, and peace.
Medicine
Gary Ruvkun, professor of genetics at Harvard Medical School and an investigator at Massachusetts General Hospital, is a recipient of the 2024 Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine for the discovery of microRNAs, a class of tiny RNA molecules that regulate the activities of thousands of genes in plants and animals, including humans.
See all of our medicine laureates
Physics
A pioneering theoretical physicist from the dawn of the atomic age, Roy Glauber updated the theory of the nature of light from its origins in the 19th century to include modern quantum principles. He helped explain how light can travel in the form of quanta (particles) as well as rays or waves.
See all of our physics laureates
Chemistry
A die-hard Red Sox fan, Dudley Herschbach describes his research by pitching baseball metaphors. “Think of a crowd at a baseball game. In ordinary chemistry, you have to deal with the whole crowd at once. … In effect, what we’ve done is eavesdrop on conversations between molecules, as if listening to a pair of people in that crowd.”
See all of our chemistry laureates
Literature
Seamus Heaney won the Nobel Prize in Literature for “poetic works of lyrical beauty and ethical depth, which exalt everyday miracles and the living past.”
See all of our literature laureates
Peace
Upon hearing that he had been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his work in the Middle East, Ralph Bunche respectfully declined the honor, noting “peacemaking at the UN was not done for prizes.” He later relented, realizing that the recognition would be good for the still-young United Nations.
See all of our peace laureates
Economic Sciences
Claudia Goldin provided the first comprehensive history of American women’s earnings and job market outcomes through the centuries, tracking the evolution of the nation’s gender wage gap. For her efforts the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences awarded her the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences, making her only the third woman to win the prize and the first to do so solo.
See all of our economic sciences laureates
“I am standing here because I have students. My students are my muses.”
Learn more about Professor Claudia Goldin
Learn more about Professor Claudia Goldin
“It was the secretary of the Nobel committee and it sounded real.”
Learn more about Professor Ruvkun
Learn more about Professor Ruvkun
“My heart started racing, I was overwhelmed.”
Learn more about Professor William Kaelin
Learn more about Professor William Kaelin
Skip to main content
Harvard’s Nobel Laureates
Established in 1895 by the Swedish chemist and inventor of dynamite Alfred Bernhard Nobel, the Nobel Prize is an annual award acknowledging outstanding contributions to physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature, and peace.
Medicine
Gary Ruvkun, professor of genetics at Harvard Medical School and an investigator at Massachusetts General Hospital, is a recipient of the 2024 Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine for the discovery of microRNAs, a class of tiny RNA molecules that regulate the activities of thousands of genes in plants and animals, including humans.
See all of our medicine laureates
Physics
A pioneering theoretical physicist from the dawn of the atomic age, Roy Glauber updated the theory of the nature of light from its origins in the 19th century to include modern quantum principles. He helped explain how light can travel in the form of quanta (particles) as well as rays or waves.
See all of our physics laureates
Chemistry
A die-hard Red Sox fan, Dudley Herschbach describes his research by pitching baseball metaphors. “Think of a crowd at a baseball game. In ordinary chemistry, you have to deal with the whole crowd at once. … In effect, what we’ve done is eavesdrop on conversations between molecules, as if listening to a pair of people in that crowd.”
See all of our chemistry laureates
Literature
Seamus Heaney won the Nobel Prize in Literature for “poetic works of lyrical beauty and ethical depth, which exalt everyday miracles and the living past.”
See all of our literature laureates
Peace
Upon hearing that he had been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his work in the Middle East, Ralph Bunche respectfully declined the honor, noting “peacemaking at the UN was not done for prizes.” He later relented, realizing that the recognition would be good for the still-young United Nations.
See all of our peace laureates
Economic Sciences
Claudia Goldin provided the first comprehensive history of American women’s earnings and job market outcomes through the centuries, tracking the evolution of the nation’s gender wage gap. For her efforts the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences awarded her the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences, making her only the third woman to win the prize and the first to do so solo.
See all of our economic sciences laureates
“I am standing here because I have students. My students are my muses.”
Learn more about Professor Claudia Goldin
Learn more about Professor Claudia Goldin
“It was the secretary of the Nobel committee and it sounded real.”
Learn more about Professor Ruvkun
Learn more about Professor Ruvkun
“My heart started racing, I was overwhelmed.”
Learn more about Professor William Kaelin
Learn more about Professor William Kaelin