We're down to the Final 4 of Sigma Xi's Nobel Prize prediction contest, October Madness! Vote to make sure your top picks make it to the finals!
Voting is open until September 17, 2017, for the Final 4 round.
Final 4 Voting
The Final 4 chemistry match-ups are:
1.
M. Stanley Whittingham and John Goodenough for research leading to the development of the lithium ion battery
vs.
Dennis Lo Yuk-ming for detecting fetal DNA in maternal plasma, a revolution in noninvasive prenatal testing
2.
Stuart Schrieber for pioneering chemical insights into the logic of signal transduction and gene regulation that led to new therapeutics and for applications of small-molecule probes
vs.
Harry Gray and Steve Lippard for pioneering work in the field of bioinorganic chemistry
The Final 4 physics match-ups are:
1.
Celso Grebogi, Edward Ott, and James A. Yorke for describing a control theory of chaotic systems
vs.
Sandra M. Faber for leadership in numerous path-breaking studies of extra-galactic astronomy and galaxy formation
2.
Shinya Inoué for contributions to visualization of processes within living cells using light microscopy
vs.
Alexander Polyakov for work in quantum field and string theory
The Final 4 physiology or medicine match-ups are:
1.
Emanuelle Charpentier, Jennifer Doudna, and Feng Zhang for CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing
vs.
Bert Vogelstein and Robert Weinberg for advancements in identifying rogue cancer genes and their roles in health and disease
2.
James Allison for work on immune checkpoint bloackade treatment
vs.
Jacques Miller for revealing the key role of the thymus in controlling the body's immune system
Elite 8 Voting Results*
Chemistry
Physics
Physiology or Medicine
*Ties were broken by the number of votes each nominee received in the Sweet 16 round, with the exception of the physics match-up of Marvin L. Cohen vs. Celso Grebogi, Edward Ott, and James A. Yorke. These nominees received the same amount of votes in the Sweet 16 round, so their Elite 8 round tie was broken by coin toss, resulting in Grebogi, Ott, and Yorke advancing to the Final 4.
Heather Thorstensen is manager of communications for Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Honor Society.