Nordic Life Science 1
54 “Finding what we love is how we truly contribu
te to the world. I think one of the best ways to discover your passion is to think deeply about the world around you. Curiosity is what leads us to find what truly inspires us.” seems to criticize or doubt your work, there’s always a small minority, about 5%, who recognize its potential. They’ll speak up and say, ‘This is actually a promising idea,’ seeing what others overlook. That 5% is always there. You’ll never face total doubt; someone will always understand your vision and believe in it. I’ve seen this pattern repeatedly throughout my academic and research career.” When Omar Yaghi first developed MOFs, people in the chemistry community asked if that was really chemistry. Questioning whether what they were doing belonged to the field at all. While traditional chemistry has focused on discrete, individual molecules, Yaghi’s research group was building infinite, extended structures made from those same molecular components. In other words, they were taking chemistry in a completely new direction, one that went beyond the mainstream understanding at the time. “To me, the Nobel Prize signifies that this approach, which we’ve been developing for more than 35 years, is now recognized as a credible and foundational part of the field. The Nobel Committee clearly felt that it provides benefit to humankind, and from an academic perspective, it affirms that this work has become an integral part of chemistry itself. It’ now part of the textbooks that future generations of students will study and build upon,” Yaghi says. Not the end, not even the beginning of the end Omar Yaghi explains that winning the Nobel Prize is just the beginning, and that the three previous decades of research have only laid the foundation for this vast field they’ve created. For example, he and his colleagues have been working with Covalent Organic Frameworks (COFs), which are entirely organic structures. And now, they are exploring even more possibilities, such as using AI to accelerate discoveries and transform chemistry in the laboratory. H “Seeing students grow and push beyond their own expectations inspires me every day,” says Omar Yaghi. NLS e also has ideas about creating chemical structures that function like DNA. Systems that operate based on sequences of chemical information embedded within their structures, leading to highly specific and programmable properties. “These concepts open entirely new frontiers up to us, and who knows, we may yet discover things even greater than what we’ve achieved so far,” he shares. “The Nobel Prize has motivated me more than ever,” concludes Yaghi. “There’s so much to do, I am incredibly excited about the future. I look forward to many more years of research and discovery. I truly feel this is only the beginning. As Winston Churchill said, ‘This is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning’”. THE NOBEL PRIZE // CHEMISTRY PHOTO BRITTANY HOSEA-SMALL / UC BERKELEY MEDIA RELATIONS