Love of knowledge, research as a mission, the role and responsibility of scientists: these are the dominant themes in the speeches of Nobel prize laureates through the whole history of the prize.
It is the result of a study conducted by the University of Trento and published in Plos One in perfect timing with the award of the 2019 prizes.
The paper presents the results of a quantitative analysis of 218 speeches given between 1901 and 2018 by Nobel laureates in physics, chemistry and medicine/physiology at the gala dinner, out of a total of 607 awardees in all disciplines.
A research team of the Department of Sociology and Social Research of the University of Trento carried out a study of recurrent themes. They found out that the speeches of Nobel prize laureates celebrate science and its social and cultural importance, as did Carlo Rubbia (1984 physics Nobel prize) by quoting a famous verse from Dante's Divine comedy: "you were not made to live your lives as brutes, but to be followers of worth and knowledge".
Another dominant theme is the description of science as a practical profession requiring great dedication and sacrifice. Shuji Nakamura (Nobel prize in physics, 2014), for example, pointed out that Led technology (Light Emitting Diode) was achieved through perseverance, after 30 years of work on something that was deemed impossible.
Over time, speeches became more and more like lectures, their focus shifting from the benefits for humankind to technical and scientific aspects, as can be seen in the speech by Tasuku Honjo (Nobel prize in physiology/medicine, 2018) on the role of immunotherapy in curing cancer.
During the two world wars, speeches made reference to politics and the role of nations, but science is seen as a terrain where nationalistic stances and conflict among nations can find a context for peaceful competition and even cooperation. Many speeches describe scientific research as an international environment, where national pride and rivalry are left behind and enemies become colleagues: by Archibald Vivian Hill (Nobel prize in physiology/medicine, 1922), Irving Langmuir (Nobel prize in chemistry, 1932), Herbert S. Gasser (Nobel prize in physiology/medicine, 1944).
The themes of the responsibility of science and the impact of research products surface after the Second World War. The ambivalence of science’s social and political role is captured by the speeches of many laureates, including Edward Appleton (Nobel prize in physics, 1947) and Patrick Blackett (Nobel prize in physics, 1948).
The article "Give science and peace a chance: Speeches by Nobel laureates in the sciences, 1901-2018" is available in open access, and was written by Massimiano Bucchi, Enzo Loner and Eliana Fattorini of the Department of Sociology and Social Research of the University of Trento. It was published in Plos One on 8 October.