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First Israeli Woman to Receive Nobel Prize

Posted by Melanie Nathan:-   So many people go through years of performing their lives in way that will serve the good of all to the fullest bounds of the globe.    They do this without thinking of awards or recognition.  They do it because they have honed their brilliance and special talents to serve humankind, regardless of whom may benefit.  A remarkable number of such people have come from one tiny country and now it yields its first woman.

Such is the story of Israeli and the scientist Ada Yonath, who now at age 70, was awarded the Nobel Prize for chemistry, sharing the prize worth 10 million Swedish crowns ($1.4 million) with Americans Venkatraman Ramakrishnan and Thomas Steitz. She is the first Israeli woman to ever win the most prestigious of awards for intellectual achievement.

“As ribosomes are crucial to life, they are also a major target for new antibiotics,” the Nobel Committee for Chemistry at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said in a statement.

When Yonath  heard rumor that she had won, she thought it an elaborate practical joke, and her doubts remained until received the official phone call notifying her of the award. “When I saw the +46 Swedish country code on my phone screen, I thought, they’re really taking this prank far,” she said.

A renowned scientist, Yonath serves as the director of the Helen and Milton A. Kimmelman Center for Biomolecular Structure and Assembly at the Weizmann Institute of Science.  She was a co-recipient of the 2006 Wolf Prize in Chemistry, along George Feher, and in 2008, became the first Israeli to win a lifetime’s achievement award from L’Oréal and UNESCO for her vital work identifying how bacteria become resistant to antibiotics.

Referring to her ground-breaking study she said, “The topic was such that if a breakthrough could really be achieved, it would have Nobel-winning potential. It was considered difficult to the point of impossible.” She added: “People were skeptical and I myself wasn’t sure we would make it – but indeed we did.”

President Shimon Peres called Yonath and congratulated her on the win. “We are so proud of you, it’s hard to describe just how much. You are extremely deserving of the Nobel and the award is an achievement to the entire country, we are all excited together with you,” Peres said. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu congratulated her, saying: “I, as all other Israelis, am extremely proud of you. The Nobel Prize is the true Olympics of mankind.”

Opposition Chairwoman Tzipi Livni emphasized the feminine aspect. “I was excited, and I am proud that it’s a woman winning the prestigious prize. I know that when women reach achievements, particularly such an achievement, it gives strength to other women to dare and succeed.

Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said “Her win helps present Israel’s real image as one of the world’s leading countries of science and technology. Prof. Yonath joins an honorable list of Israelis who have won the most important international recognition.

 The State of Israel, which is a tiny country, has a  respectable representation among Nobel Prize recipients.

 Imperative is the importance of this award; it is a newfound light to Israel’s image; a brief interlude from the focus on Middle East Conflict. This compelling image, may be new for most, but  many of us  have been privy to personally witness the accomplishments of an extraordinary country of people.     Maybe a transformation can be found in the work of this Laureatte – as in the words of Livni to Yonath ” it  strengthens Israel’s image beyond the conflict, Israel as a country which nurtures science and manages to illustrate through women like you its contribution to science and humanity.”   Israel’s contributions to the world and its well being is enormous and can no longer go unnoticed.

Mazeltov Professor and Todah Rabah.

Blogged by Melanie Nathan
Nathan@privatecourts.com