The first of five Nobel Prizes was awarded today in Sweden to two American scientists “for their discovery of RNA interference – gene silencing by double-stranded RNA.” The recipient were Andrew Z. Fire (Stanford), and Craig C. Mello (University of Massachusetts. More prizes will be anounced this week: Physics, October 3, Chemistry, October 4, Economics, October 9, Peace, October 13, and Literature later in the month. The awards will be presented in Stockholm, in December.

The Nobel Prizes are prizes instituted by the will of Alfred Nobel, awarded to people (and also to organizations in the case of the Nobel Peace Prize) who have done outstanding research, invented groundbreaking techniques or equipment, or made outstanding contributions to society. Nobel, who was born in Sweden, but spent a good part of his life in France and Italy, wrote a one-paragraph statement enacting the prizes in his will. All the prizes, except Economics, were established by him. The first prizes were awarded in 1901.