Who will be the first Filipino recipient of the Nobel Prize?

Rumors have been buzzing around and before you know it the Nobel Prize Organization has been handing out prizes here and there. And so it's the Nobel Prize season once again. It occurred to me just today since news agencies have been tweeting every now and then about a particular scientist who was pleasantly surprised for winning.

Two prizes have been awarded thus far. In the website of the Nobel Prize Organization they have posted two announcements that have made news earlier this week. It says in their site:

The 2011 Nobel Prize in Physics is awarded "for the discovery of the accelerating expansion of the Universe through observations of distant supernovae" with one half to Saul Perlmutter and the other half jointly to Brian P. Schmidt and Adam G. Riess.

Also, their website announces that:

The 2011 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was divided, one half jointly to Bruce A. Beutler and Jules A. Hoffmann "for their discoveries concerning the activation of innate immunity" and the other half to Ralph M. Steinman "for his discovery of the dendritic cell and its role in adaptive immunity".

It is really a big honor for any scientist/economist/writer to win a Nobel Prize. It's not even about the cash prize. We are talking about unparalleled recognition from a judicious and well-known body of judges. Just to be considered for it speaks a lot for the quality of one's body of scientific work. The prize stands as an enduring testimonial to immense contribution of one's research to the whole body of scientific knowledge.

As I write this blog, the world is awaiting for the winner of 2011 Nobel Prize for Chemistry. And while sometimes, expectant nominees are rewarded with that long-awaited call. Nobody can really tell who will win the prize. There is no formula for winning a Nobel Prize. And that's what makes it prestigious.

I myself would like to be recognized for the scientific work that I do. But I am far from publishing any of the research work that I have done. That is one crucial step that one has to make. Doing an experiment is easy. Getting it published is difficult. So it is really unimaginable for many of the awardees that they would win a Nobel Prize.

The Prize for Literature, Peace and Economics will be announced on October 6,7 & 10 respectively. It is difficult to know who'll win but one thing's for sure, whoever wins it will make news and their names will be immortalized.

By the way, you can send your greetings to the Nobel Laureates. Just go the website of Nobel Prize Organization. On their homepage, in the upper right corner of the page, there are dialogue boxes for you to fill in so you can send your personal greetings. Isn't that cool?

When talking about the Nobel Prize, Filipinos have never been that much excited about it. This is true, at least, when compared to the Oscar Awards. For the record, both award-giving bodies have never recognized any Filipino scientist/artist. So I would be shocked to my core if the next winner of the Nobel Prize for Chemistry is a Filipino. This is not to say that Filipino chemists are not as good as their counterparts. But this goes to show the unpredictability of the results of the judging.

If a Filipino wins the Nobel Prize for Chemistry, I'll ask the President to declare his/her birthday as a National Holiday. Or whatever it takes, somebody has to make that Filipino proud of his achievements for gracing the list of Nobel Prize winners. His/her win will be a victory of the whole Filipino race who have at some point been regarded as a race of maids, nurses, waiters, entertainers. While I am proud of our OFWs, I think it is high time that Filipinos be recognized for their scientific contributions as well. Imagine what pride one could give to the whole nation, if a Filipino wins the Nobel Prize.

On that note, I wish to encourage more Filipinos to aspire for Nobel Prize...or to aspire to be good scientists. Also, it would be good for Filipino parents to encourage their kids at an early age to consider careers in sciences and engineering. I am saying this without any bias to my profession. I am a chemist, and while I grew up thinking I would be a great journalist or a great doctor one day...I have somehow enjoyed my career as a chemist and I am taking efforts to improve my skills as a chemist/researcher.

Finally, let us enjoy more of the good news that comes our way as more Prizes will be awarded in the succeeding days. Good luck to the expectant nominees and may the most deserving nominee win. Meanwhile, the question stands: "Who will be the first Filipino recipient of the Nobel Prize?"