Physicist Charles Townes died Tuesday. He was a key inventor of the laser and won the Nobel Prize for his discovery in 1964. But his career didn't end there.
"In my opinion, a situation in which an outstanding scientist has to sell a medal recognizing his achievements is unacceptable," says Russian business tycoon Alisher Usmanov.
The Nobel Prize that James Watson won for helping explain how DNA is structured has a new owner. Watson has said he'll donate much of the $4.75 million sales price to educational institutions.
This year's Nobel Prize in physics went to scientists who invented the blue light-emitting diode. Paired with solar power, the energy-efficient LED is bringing affordable light to places off the grid.
The Nobel committee said Jean Tirole has helped to reshape regulators' policies with his idea that the same rules have different effects — good and bad — in different industries.
This year's Nobel Prize in chemistry went to a team that came up with a way to take a closer look at the secret lives of living cells. It could make biomedical research a lot easier.