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2 comments

  1. nacho
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    The Nobel prizes were established in 1895 due to the will of Alfred Nobel. The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel was established in 1968 by the Swedish central...

    The Nobel prizes were established in 1895 due to the will of Alfred Nobel.

    The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel was established in 1968 by the Swedish central bank, Riksbanken, to commemorate the bank's 300th anniversary.

    It's a copycat prize, although the laureates receive the award at the same ceremony. Economists have been using the prize to legitimize their field since its inception.


    If we want to piggyback on the standing of the Nobel prizes to stimulate exceptional achievements in worthwhile fields, why not have a prize in arts to flank the prize in literature?

    Why not have a prize for the advancement of human rights to flank the peace prize?

    A prize in sustainability, in (unpatented?) invention, mathematics or philosophy? Or in international cooperation or (free-to-use) programming?

    The prize categories are engines for good. People go to great lengths to get recognition afforded by the top prizes available in their fields. Think what an impact a Nobel prize in philanthropy or education could bring!

    Economics, however, doesn't seem anything like the basic nature of the prize categories of chemistry, physics, peace, medicine or literature.

    10 votes
  2. skybrian
    Link
    I found the article to be quite thoughtful, better than you might guess from the headline.

    I found the article to be quite thoughtful, better than you might guess from the headline.

    1 vote