A little wonder, every day

Fact 1625 — Record laureate ages in 2013: 90 and 25

AI-generated cover: reading glasses, notebooks and a crystal lattice model suggest two generations of scientific work. Generated 19 October 2026. Prompt: “Photorealistic vertical 4:5 editorial cover about historical Nobel laureate age records in 2013, when the oldest was 90 and the youngest 25. Still life only: old reading glasses, a simple crystal lattice model, two notebooks of different ages and a fountain pen on a desk. No people, no faces, no busts, no statues, no portraits, no numbers or readable text, no logos or awards.”

portrait of Leonid Hurwicz, photographed in 2005; the 2013 AP report says he received the 2007 Economics Prize at age 90. Creator: Dong Oh, sourced to the University of Minnesota. [Wikimedia Commons file page](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Leonid_Hurwicz.jpg). CC BY 3.0; attribution required; [license](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/). No edits. This is a 2005 portrait, not a photograph of him at the 2007 ceremony.

AI-generated fictional reconstruction of an elderly economist reviewing notes around 2007, not Leonid Hurwicz or a documented event. Generated 19 October 2026. Prompt: “Photorealistic historical editorial reconstruction, vertical 4:5: an elderly economist in his late 80s reviewing handwritten notes in a university office around 2007, dignified thoughtful posture, soft window light. Generic fictional person, not Leonid Hurwicz and not a documented event. No readable text, no logos, no awards.”

portrait of William Lawrence Bragg, source dates it to 1915. Source: Nobel Foundation; file is marked public domain in Sweden under the Swedish photographic-work provisions, with jurisdiction caveat on the Commons file page. [Wikimedia Commons file page](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Wl-bragg.jpg). No edits.

AI-generated fictional historical reconstruction of a young physicist studying a crystal model, not William Lawrence Bragg or a documented event. Generated 19 October 2026. Prompt: “Photorealistic historical editorial reconstruction, vertical 4:5: a young physicist in an early 20th-century laboratory examining a small crystal model and notebook, period-appropriate clothing, bright window light. Generic fictional scientist, not William Lawrence Bragg and not a documented event. No readable text, no logos, no awards.”

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AI-generated cover: reading glasses, notebooks and a crystal lattice model suggest two generations of scientific work. Generated 19 October 2026. Prompt: “Photorealistic vertical 4:5 editorial cover about historical Nobel laureate age records in 2013, when the oldest was 90 and the youngest 25. Still life only: old reading glasses, a simple crystal lattice model, two notebooks of different ages and a fountain pen on a desk. No people, no faces, no busts, no statues, no portraits, no numbers or readable text, no logos or awards.”

Listen to fact0:00 / —

In an Associated Press report ahead of the 2013 ceremony, the oldest laureate in history at that time was identified as Leonid Hurwicz, who was awarded the Economics Prize at age 90. The youngest record holder then was physicist Lawrence Bragg, who received the prize at age 25 in 1915. These are historical records that later changed.