In a column published in Dawn’s Young World on October 31, 2026, Aamnah Arshad explored the vast expanse of human curiosity through the metaphor of a creaky old hallway cupboard containing six doors, each unlocked by a Nobel Prize. The essay connects whimsical childhood musings about hidden biscuits to the rigorous, reality-bending achievements of Nobel laureates.
Illuminating the Brain and Tracing Ghost Particles
Behind the first imaginary door of Arshad’s hallway cupboard, a green alga represents the breakthrough of scientists Peter Hegemann and Georg Nagel, who discovered an algal protein responsive to light. Karl Deisseroth later utilized this protein to switch specially prepared nerve cells on and off, earning the prize in Physiology or Medicine for the foundational technique known as optogenetics. As Arshad notes, the method grants researchers tools to study memories, feelings, and actions, with ongoing explorations into restoring sight.
Shifting from neurobiology to the freezing expanses of the Antarctic, the second door opens onto the work of Francis Halzen, recipient of the 2026 Nobel Prize in Physics for decisive contributions to the IceCube Neutrino Observatory and the discovery of high-energy neutrinos of astrophysical origin. These elusive subatomic particles pass through matter nearly unobstructed, earning them the moniker “ghost particles.” IceCube deploys deep-ice sensors to capture faint flashes when these travelers collide with matter, illuminating distant galaxies and powerful events in space.
Molecular Shapes, Literary Cartwheels, and International Justice
Chemistry and literature share the middle of the narrative arc through mirror-image molecules and inventive prose. The third door reflects the work of chemists Henri B. Kagan and Kenso Soai, whose research into mirror-image molecules explains how chemical reactions can produce much more of one molecular form than the other, aiding chemists in planning how to make medicines. Moving to the fourth door, Canadian writer Anne Carson earned the literature prize for bringing old stories and classical ideas into inventive new forms, mixing poetry, prose, and translation.
The fifth door turns toward human rights and international law, featuring Navi Pillay. Honored with the peace prize, Pillay defended human rights and worked to hold perpetrators of terrible crimes accountable, reinforcing the principle that rules must protect everyone.
Economic Modeling and the Universe in a Textbook
The Economics Sciences Prize winners Robert E. Hall and Michael Woodford developed models demonstrating how choices made by families and businesses affect the economy. Their frameworks assist governments and central banks in responding to economic problems and reducing harmful ups and downs. Arshad concludes the essay by noting that while the cupboard doors revealed no biscuits, they unveiled a persistent human drive to ask questions for the benefit of others, leaving the author resolved to open her science books more carefully.
