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Risky thing: The X-ray procedure, which can be traced back to Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen, was lengthy at first - and dangerous, because the radiation was extremely high
Photo: Deutsche Fotothek
The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences devised a special program for the very first award of the Nobel Prize in Physics.
The gala on December 10, 1901 in Stockholm was supposed to spread glamor;
The guests of the event wore tailcoats.
For the festive meal, a starter was served first of all Norman-style brill, then imperial fillet and roasted grouse.
Finally, the Swedish Crown Prince presented the award.
But then, of all people, the award winner thwarted the organizers' bill.
Donated by the Swedish dynamite inventor and industrialist Alfred Nobel, the prize honored groundbreaking knowledge in physics, chemistry and medicine, literature and commitment to peace.
The first Nobel Prize winner in physics was a German, Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen;
he received the award for discovering the rays named after him.
But as a rather eccentric and reserved guy, Röntgen loved his laboratory at the University of Würzburg more than the big stage.
He had already given up a patent application for his discovery.
And now he accepted the honor, but refused the highlight of the evening: the celebratory speech in front of the invited audience.
Instead, he quickly mumbled a few words of thanks and left the stage.
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