Economics Noble for three

STOCKHOLM (SWEDEN), OCT. 10. Three Americans won the Nobel Economic Prize on Wednesday for developing theories about financial markets that can be applied to both developing and advanced economies while two Americans and a Japanese scientist shared the chemistry prize for showing how to better control chemical reactions, leading to medicines including a treatment for Parkinson's disease.

Mr. George A. Akerlof (61), of the University of California at Berkeley, Mr. A. Michael Spence (58), of Stanford University and Mr. Joseph E. Stiglitz (58), of Columbia University will share the $ 943,000 award. They were cited ``for their analyses of markets with asymmetric information,'' referring to the fact that some market players have better information than others.

The laureates laid the foundation in the 1970s for a general theory about exchange of information. Their contributions ``form the core of modern information economics,'' the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said. ``Countless applications extend from traditional agricultural markets in developing countries to modern financial markets in developed economies,'' the awards citation said.

Mr. William S. Knowles (84), of St. Louis, Missouri, and Ryoji Noyori (63), of Nagoya University in Japan shared half the award for chemistry. Mr. K. Barry Sharpless (60), of the Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, California, won the other half.

Their research deals with the fact that many molecules appear in two forms that are mirror images of each other, just like the left and right hands. Cells generally respond correctly to only one of these forms, while the other form might be harmful. Drugs often use such mirror-image molecules, and the difference between the two forms can be a matter of life and death. The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, which chooses the winners, singled out as an example the drug thalidomide, used by pregnant women in the 1960s. One form of the drug helped control nausea, while its opposite form caused birth defects.

Research by the Nobel winners has produced ways of making only the proper form of molecules, leading to antibiotics, anti- inflammatory drugs, ulcer treatments, heart medications - even flavourings and sweeteners.

``The discovery can move frontiers of research forward in medicine, chemistry and biology,'' Mr. Per Ahlberg, a member of the Academy's Nobel Committee, said at a news conference.

The literature prize will be announced on Thursday and the peace prize on Friday in Oslo, Norway. The prizes are always presented to the winners on Dec. 10, the anniversary of Alfred Nobel's death in 1896. To mark the 100th anniversary of the prizes, all living laureates have been invited to the ceremonies this year, with some 150 expected in Stockholm and 30 in Oslo.

Last year's economics prize was won by the Americans, Mr. James J. Heckman and Mr. Daniel L. McFadden for their work in developing theories to help analyse labour data and how people make work and travel decisions.

- AP

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