The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences has decided to award the Nobel Prize in Peace 2018 with Denis Mukwege and Nadia Murad for their efforts to end the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war and armed conflict. Denis Mukwege is the helper who has devoted his life to defending victims of war-time sexual violence.

He has spent large parts of his adult life helping the victims of sexual violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Dr Mukwege and his staff have treated thousands of patients who have fallen victim to such assaults. Nobel Prize 2018 For Chemistry Winner: Frances H Arnold, George P Smith, Sir Gregory P Winter Awarded Honour For 'Harnessing the Power of Evolution'. 

Nadia Murad, awarded the 2018 Nobel Peace Prize, is the witness who tells of the abuses perpetrated against herself and others. She has shown uncommon courage in recounting her own sufferings and speaking up on behalf of other victims. is one of an estimated 3,000 Yazidi girls and women who were victims of rape and other abuses by the IS army. The abuses were systematic and part of a military strategy. They served as a weapon in the fight against Yazidis and other religious minorities.

The Chemistry laureates have taken control of evolution and used the same principles – genetic change and selection – to develop proteins that solve humankind’s chemical problems. Frances Arnold, awarded the 2018 Nobel Prize, conducted the first directed evolution of enzymes, which are proteins that catalyse chemical reactions. Enzymes produced through directed evolution are used to manufacture everything from biofuels to pharmaceuticals.

On Tuesday, Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded to Arthur Ashkin and the other half jointly to Gérard Mourou and Donna Strickland. The laureates were awarded the Nobel Prize for groundbreaking inventions in the field of laser physics.

The Swedish Academy has decided to postpone the 2018 Nobel Prize in literature. On Monday, Jean-Claude Arnault, the man at the centre of a sexual abuse and financial misconduct scandal that forced the postponement of this year’s Nobel prize in literature, has been convicted of rape. One of the other reason for debate this year was also regarding the low representation of women laureates in fields such as sciences.

In a positive news to this debate, Donna Strickland on October 2 became the third woman in 55 Years to Win the Nobel Prize in Physics. Frances Arnold won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, and she became only the fifth woman to win a Nobel Prize for Chemistry. Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences will be declared on October 8.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 05, 2018 02:32 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).