There were a few notable surprises in these announcements this year. Alfred Bernhard Nobel was born on 21 October 1833 – and died 10 December 1896. He was a Swedish chemist, engineer, inventor, businessman, and philanthropist.
Nobel was best nown for inventing dynamite, Nobel also owned Bofors, which he had redirected from its previous role as primarily an iron and steel producer to a major manufacturer of cannon and other armaments. Nobel held 355 different patents, dynamite being the most famous.
After reading a premature obituary which condemned him for profiting from the sales of arms, he bequeathed his fortune to institute the Nobel Prizes. The synthetic element nobelium was named after him.
His name also survives in modern-day companies such as Dynamit Nobel and AkzoNobel, which are descendants of mergers with companies Nobel himself established.
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