Chemical experiments ideally take place in labs.
But the ability to carry them out in real time through computers has won an Israeli, Austrian and British scientist the Nobel prize for chemistry 2013.
The Nobel prize in chemistry was on Wednesday awarded by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences jointly to Martin Karplus ( Harvard University), Michael Levitt (Stanford School of Medicine) and Arieh Warshel (University of Southern California) "for the development of multi-scale models for complex chemical systems".
The fact that scientists these days can use computers to carry out experiments has yielded a much deeper understanding of how chemical processes play out. Computer models mirroring real life have become crucial for most advances made in chemistry today. Chemists earlier used to create models of molecules using plastic balls and sticks. Today, the modelling is carried out in computers.
In the 1970s, Martin Karplus, Michael Levitt and Arieh Warshel laid the foundation for the powerful programs that are used to understand and predict chemical processes.
The strength of the methods that Karplus, Levitt and Warshel have developed is that they are universal. They can be used to study all kinds of chemistry; from the molecules of life to industrial chemical processes. Scientists can optimize solar cells, catalysts in motor vehicles or even drugs, to take but a few examples.
Experts say the work of Karplus, Levitt and Warshel is ground-breaking because they managed to make Newton's classical physics work side-by-side with the fundamentally different quantum physics. Previously, chemists had to choose to use either or.
The strength of classical physics was that calculations were simple and could be used to model really large molecules. Its weakness, it offered no way to simulate chemical reactions.
For that purpose, chemists instead had to use quantum physics.
But such calcula-tions required enormous computing power and could therefore only be carried out for small molecules.
RSAS said "This year's Nobel Laureates in chemistry took the best from both worlds and devised methods that use both classical and quantum physics. For instance, in simu-lations of how a drug couples to its target protein in the body, the computer performs quantum theoretical calculations on those atoms in the target protein that interact with the drug. The rest of the large protein is simulated using less demanding classical physics. Today the computer is just as important a tool for chemists as the test tube. Simulations are so realistic that they predict the outcome of traditional experiments".
Progress will not stop there, however.
In one of his publications, Levitt recently wrote about one of his dreams: to simulate a living organism on a molecular level.
RSAS said "It is a tantalizing thought. The computer models that have been developed by the three Nobel laureates are powerful tools. Exactly how far they can advance our knowledge is for the future to decide".
RSAS said that chemical reactions occur at lightning speed - electrons jump between atomicnuclei, hidden from the prying eyes of scientists.
The Nobel laureates in chemistry 2013 have made it possible to map the mysterious ways of chemistry by using computers. Detailed knowledge of chemical processes makes it possible to optimize catalysts, drugs and solar cells.
But the ability to carry them out in real time through computers has won an Israeli, Austrian and British scientist the Nobel prize for chemistry 2013.
The Nobel prize in chemistry was on Wednesday awarded by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences jointly to Martin Karplus ( Harvard University), Michael Levitt (Stanford School of Medicine) and Arieh Warshel (University of Southern California) "for the development of multi-scale models for complex chemical systems".
The fact that scientists these days can use computers to carry out experiments has yielded a much deeper understanding of how chemical processes play out. Computer models mirroring real life have become crucial for most advances made in chemistry today. Chemists earlier used to create models of molecules using plastic balls and sticks. Today, the modelling is carried out in computers.
In the 1970s, Martin Karplus, Michael Levitt and Arieh Warshel laid the foundation for the powerful programs that are used to understand and predict chemical processes.
The strength of the methods that Karplus, Levitt and Warshel have developed is that they are universal. They can be used to study all kinds of chemistry; from the molecules of life to industrial chemical processes. Scientists can optimize solar cells, catalysts in motor vehicles or even drugs, to take but a few examples.
Experts say the work of Karplus, Levitt and Warshel is ground-breaking because they managed to make Newton's classical physics work side-by-side with the fundamentally different quantum physics. Previously, chemists had to choose to use either or.
The strength of classical physics was that calculations were simple and could be used to model really large molecules. Its weakness, it offered no way to simulate chemical reactions.
For that purpose, chemists instead had to use quantum physics.
But such calcula-tions required enormous computing power and could therefore only be carried out for small molecules.
RSAS said "This year's Nobel Laureates in chemistry took the best from both worlds and devised methods that use both classical and quantum physics. For instance, in simu-lations of how a drug couples to its target protein in the body, the computer performs quantum theoretical calculations on those atoms in the target protein that interact with the drug. The rest of the large protein is simulated using less demanding classical physics. Today the computer is just as important a tool for chemists as the test tube. Simulations are so realistic that they predict the outcome of traditional experiments".
Progress will not stop there, however.
In one of his publications, Levitt recently wrote about one of his dreams: to simulate a living organism on a molecular level.
RSAS said "It is a tantalizing thought. The computer models that have been developed by the three Nobel laureates are powerful tools. Exactly how far they can advance our knowledge is for the future to decide".
RSAS said that chemical reactions occur at lightning speed - electrons jump between atomicnuclei, hidden from the prying eyes of scientists.
The Nobel laureates in chemistry 2013 have made it possible to map the mysterious ways of chemistry by using computers. Detailed knowledge of chemical processes makes it possible to optimize catalysts, drugs and solar cells.
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