Today, Alice Munro became the first Canadian to win the Nobel prize for literature. The prize is named for Alfred Nobel, who gave most of his fortune to a series of prizes in science, medicine, literature and peace in 1895.
Here are some other Canadian-born winners:
Nobel laureate, Prize, Year:
1. Ralph Steinman (1943-2011): Medicine, 2011
2. Willard S. Boyle (1924-2011): Physics, 2009
3. Robert A. Mundell (1932- ): Economics, 1999
4. Myron S. Scholes (1941- ) Economics, 1996
5. William Vickrey (1914-96) Economics, 1996
6. Bertram N. Brockhouse (1918-2003) Physics, 1994
7. Rudolph A. Marcus (1923- ) Chemistry, 1992
8. Richard E. Taylor (1929- ) Physics, 1990
9. Sidney Altman (1939- ) Chemistry, 1989
10. Henry Taube (1915-2005) Chemistry, 1983
11. David H. Hubel (1926- ) Medicine, 1981
12. Saul Bellow* (1915-2005) Literature, 1976
13. Charles Brenton Huggins (1901-97) Medicine, 1966
14. Lester Bowles Pearson (1897-1972) Peace, 1957
15. William Fancis Giauque (1895-1982) Chemistry, 1949
16. Frederick Grant Banting (1891-1941) Medicine, 1923
NOTE: Saul Bellow was born in Quebec, but became an American citizen in adulthood.
The Maclean’s Book of Lists, Vol. 2, is now available at www.macleans.ca/bookoflists, in the iBookstore, and on newsstands.