Alfred Nobel – whose fortune established the famed Nobel Prizes – held some 350 patents by the time of his death (mostly for things that blew other things up), had founded several successful companies (most of which manufactured armaments), and had built laboratories in more than 20 countries (mostly seeking new ways to blow things up). In this, Alfred simply followed in the family business of blowing things up; his father was Immanuel Nobel, an arms manufacturer.

Born in 1833 AD in Stockholm, when Alfred was nine years old, the family relocated to St. Petersburg where Immanuel was building a torpedo factory. Here young Alfred received his early education, showing a real aptitude for chemistry. At the age of 18, he went to the United States to further his studies in chemistry. At some point, Alfred also travelled to Paris, where he was introduced to nitroglycerin, a volatile and explosive liquid invented in 1847. It was love at first sight. Alfred devoted himself to perfecting a way to explode nitroglycerine safely, at a distance; in 1865 he patented the mercury fulminate cap … and his fortune was made.

Unfortunately, his factories had the unfortunate habit of occasionally blowing up. In an attempt to cut down on the overhead, Alfred discovered that he could incorporate nitroglycerine with a porous clay (kieselguhr) … thus, dynamite. Shortly after he developed an even more stable explosive he named “gelignite” (blasting gelatin).

Although his love affair with explosives continued for many years after, Alfred's interest seemed to shift later in his life. During November 1895, a year before his death, he signed his last will and testament … most of his considerable fortune going to establish a fund to award prizes in various human endeavors he felt important for civilization.