An Iowa State University scientist remains optimistic about winning the Nobel Prize in physics, despite losing out again this year. Materials Science and Engineering professor, Dan Shechtman , is known for his 1982 discovery of something called "quasicrystals."
The professor says it changed the definition of what constituted a crystal in the scientific literature. Shechtman says: "Textbooks had to be changed, and it was quite a revolution in the science of crystallography. And this was the reason for the nomination. Actually I was nominated several times before, and just like in this time, I did not get the prize." Shechtman says he’s not frustrated by not winning the award.
"My expectations were never too high and so I am not very disappointed," Shechtman says. He says he was hoping it would happen be thinks he will be nominated again in the future and it may happen in the future. Although Shechtman didn’t win the Nobel prize, he did however win the top European award for materials science.
Shechtman made his comments via telephone from Haifa Israel where he teaches for part of the year. Iowa State officials got up before dawn ready to launch a website honoring the professor if he had been awarded the prize.