All by Rakin Choudhury
Most medical students will recall having Global Health lectures based at the Joseph Rotblat Building in Charterhouse Square. And indeed, it is a shame that many of us have never stepped foot in a building named after one of the six Barts Nobel Laureates.
If an institution is to legitimately count its Nobel Laureates as a measure of its status, it must do so by turning a blind eye to the many scores of alumni and faculty who were never recognised with such an honour, whether because they lived in the wrong era or achieved excellence in the wrong field. And then there are those who were simply ignored, such as Sir Archibald Garrod.
With six Nobel Laureates attached to its name at one point or another, St Bartholomew's Hospital Medical College has a healthy track record when it comes to picking up Nobel Prizes. It should not come as a surprise. While we cannot boast the ruthless efficiency with which Oxbridge churns them out (nor LSE’s knack for collecting the misfit ‘Nobel’ Prize in Economic Sciences), we did get there first and have been winning them since day one. Or at least day two.
If the question was posed, what do all six winners of the Nobel Prize associated with the St Bartholomew’s Hospital Medical College have in common, what would one’s answer be?
To some, stained glass is an archaic art form. To most, stained glass is not an art form at all but a relic of old churches. But among the oddities of Whitechapel Library are these remarkable works of art. If you have ever glanced away from your books, you might notice these radiant windows, each casting its own glow upon the Library and the learners below, blending together as one.
If you have recently walked to Mile End, you will notice the displays on the G O Jones Building have changed. They now proudly proclaim that we have had “9 Nobel Prize Winners” at Queen Mary University of London. But could the university claim more?
