Nobel Prize Museum | Torsten Wiesel donates instrument to Nobel Prize Museum

Torsten Wiesel donates instrument to Nobel Prize Museum

Early in June, Swedish Nobel Prize laureate Torsten Wiesel turned 100 years old. His centenary birthday was celebrated with a seminar at the Nobel Prize Museum on 17 June. He also donated a scientific instrument that he and David Hubel used in their Nobel Prize-awarded research.

On Monday, the Nobel Prize Museum added an ophthalmoscope to its collection of artefacts. The instrument was used in Torsten Wiesel’s and David Hubel’s early research. It was about how light is captured by light-sensitive cells in the retina of the eye and converted into signals that are sent to the brain and transformed into visual impressions.

The instrument was originally created by Torsten Wiesel’s mentor Stephen Kuffler. At the handover ceremony, Torsten Wiesel emphasised the importance of mentors, especially early in one’s career.

“Without my mentor Stephen Kuffler, I would not have been where I am today. The instrument belongs in the museum,” Torsten Wiesel said at the handover.

Torsten Wiesel is a neurophysiologist and physician. He received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1981 together with David Hubel. He is also the scientific patron and honorary member of the Young Academy of Sweden.

Here you can read more about Torsten Wiesel: https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/medicine/1981/wiesel/facts/

Images can be found here:
https://nobelprize.org/press-images-nobel-prize-museum

For more information, please contact

Rebecka Oxelström, Head of Press, press@nobelprize.org

+46 8 122 084 45

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The Nobel Prize shows that ideas can change the world. The courage, creativity and perseverance of the Nobel Prize laureates inspire us and give us hope for the future. Films, in-depth tours, and artefacts tell the stories of the laureates and their contributions “for the greatest benefit to humankind”. Based on the Nobel Prize’s unique combination of fields – natural sciences, literature and peace – we examine the greatest challenges of our time and show how we can respond to them through science, humanism and collaboration. With our exhibitions, school programmes, lectures and conversations, we at the Nobel Prize Museum strive to engage the public in making a better world. Today we are located on Stortorget, the main square in Gamla Stan, Stockholm’s Old Town district. We are planning to create a new home for our public outreach activities at Slussen in central Stockholm.

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