Nobel Disease

Climate denial, water memory, telepathy, and lots of racism... A surprising number of Nobel prize winners have adopted beliefs which lack any rational or scientific evidence.

There is disagreement on why we see this, or if it's even more prominent relative to the general population, but it should still make you think twice about how we treat winners. Expertise in a particular domain does not mean general expertise. We should be cautious when we give experts the platform to express their opinions on issues outside their expertise.

Paul Nurse (2001 Nobel Prize in Physiology) calls it "Nobelitis."

↳ From the source
“All of this was combined with the fact that journalists and programme producers had begun to take me seriously if I did comment on issues about which I knew little. I realised that I was in danger of developing the condition I refer to as “Nobelitis” – that is, believing you are expert in almost everything, and being prepared to express opinions about most issues with great confidence, sheltering behind the authority that the Nobel Prize can give you.”
Attention, Nobel Prize winners! Advice from someone who's already won
Reference Notes2 links
  1. Wikipedia: Nobel Diseaseshare.google
  2. Attention, Nobel Prize winners! Advice from someone who's already wonindependent.co.uk
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