I'm an astrophysicist at one of the top universities in the world. I normally don't believe in the paranormal. Alien abductions, cattle mutilation, crop circles, near death experiences. But what if I told you that me, a practicing astrophysicist, believes in the phenomenon known as near death experiences? That's right. And today I'm about to tell you about the most important near death experience that ever happened. And it's one I believe in. And you should too. Now, most near death experiences that other people talk about are paranormal.
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Physicist: Why I Believe in Near-Death Experiences
The INTO THE IMPOSSIBLE Podcast
Physicist: Why I Believe in Near-Death Experiences
BK
Speaker
Brian Keating
AG
Speaker
Al Gore
An astrophysicist shares why he believes in a particular near-death experience—the story of Alfred Nobel and the origins of the Nobel Prizes. This narrative intertwines science, history, personal tragedy, and redemption, revealing how a mistaken obituary led Nobel to shape his legacy for humanity's benefit.
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Featured moments
Highlights
“The True Origins of the Nobel Prize: "The real story takes 30 years, four deaths and one uniting thread to tell. And now, if you've ever wondered why the most famous prize in the world exists, this is the answer, and is darker, more personal and more deeply moral in its implications in architecture than you've probably ever heard about.”
“The liquid was so unstable that Sobrero himself had refused to develop it further. He was so fearful of the dangers it presented, he doubted it could ever be Used safely, it's known as nitroglycerin.”
“If you want your work to outlive you, you can't leave it to a family business. You have to build it into an institution that will long outlive not only you, your family, your Distant heirs, but maybe race for time itself.”
“The Sobering Truth About Legacy: "It said that this man Alfred, in dying, had not improved the world one bit, despite being one of the wealthiest men on earth, worth more than a quarter of a billion dollars in today's money.”
“these stories, unlike the paranormal versions, for the price of a movie ticket or a paperback, give us what religions have always tried to give us a sense of what the meaning of life is, while we still have time to do it from this side of the grave.”
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Full transcript
There's a white light. You walk into it, or you're hovering over the hospital bed where the surgeon left his glove in your otherwise beautiful cadaver. You see the loved ones wailing. You see the rogue cousin coming out of the woodwork, wondering what he's going to inherit. Now, I don't believe in any of those, and I can explain why scientifically, and I will. But there's one near death experience that changed scientific history forever. I believe in it. And you should too.
It happened in Paris in April 1888, and the tale has gone down in history. But the truth is even stranger than the fictional apocryphal story told about it. The real story takes 30 years, four deaths and one uniting thread to tell. And now, if you've ever wondered why the most famous prize in the world exists, this is the answer, and is darker, more personal and more deeply moral in its implications in architecture than you've probably ever heard about. Now, I have a personal stake in this story that I'll get to towards the end. To understand Alfred Nobel and the prizes named after him, we have to start with his family. Emmanuel Nobel, the father, the patriarch, had four sons who survived to adulthood. Robert, the eldest, Ludwig, the businessman, Alfred, the chemist, and Emile, the youngest, born in 1843.
Emile was the only one who went to university. As it turns out, he studied at Uppsala and helped at his father's family factory in his free time. On September 3, 1864, Emil is just 20 years old. He's in the family factory, and that morning he was experimenting in the workshop at Hellenenborg, just outside of Stockholm. He was tinkering with a dangerous substance that would go down in infamy, a substance his family was trying to commercialize, unsuccessfully. It was a liquid that had been discovered 17 years earlier by an Italian chemist, Ascanio Sobrero. The liquid was so unstable that Sobrero himself had refused to develop it further. He was so fearful of the dangers it presented, he doubted it could ever be Used safely, it's known as nitroglycerin.
That fateful day in September, something went wrong. We don't know exactly what. Nitroglycerin is incredibly unstable, and just a mere tremor can set it off. Five people died that day. Emil was one of them. Fortunately, Alfred was not at the factory that morning. But he would spend the next three years of his life trying to make that substance that killed his brother safe enough that other people could use it and never be harmed again. Ironically, it became one of the most dangerous substances on earth.
Dynamite. And to do that, Alferd had to embed the dangerous liquid nitroglycerin into a stable form of dirt, basically diatomaceous earth. In 1867, Alferd filed a patent that would make him one of the wealthiest men in Europe. He called it dynamite, which meant power rock in Greek. Alfred Nobel's fortune was built on solving the problem that had killed his youngest brother and would also go on to kill millions more. According to the most famous obituary in history. We'll get to that soon.
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Emmanuel Nobel, the patriarch of the family Emiles and Alfred's father was a brilliant inventor. He had invented naval mines that the Russian czar loved. They used it during the Crimean War. He invented a type of lathe that's still used in manufacturing to this day. He designed an early central heating system useful in Sweden. By any reasonable standard, he should have died an extremely wealthy man. But he didn't. When the Crimean war ended in 1856, a new tsar arose who cut the military budget and Emanuel's contracts completely evaporated.
By 1862, his creditors had sold the firm and Emanuel was forced to return to Sweden a bankrupted man. Then, just a year later, Emile died at Hellenborn. The news obviously broke his heart. He had a stroke shortly afterwards and never fully recovered. He spent most of his eight remaining years bedridden. Then on September 3, he 1872, eight years to the day after his son Emil died, Emmanuel the father died as well. Alfred watched his father change the world with his inventions, but lose everything anyway. He was determined not to let that be his fate as well.
He realized that wealth without structure evaporates. He learned that a man can be the most inventive, creative, imaginative person on the whole continent and still have nothing to show for it. Let this be a lesson. If you want your work to outlive you, you can't leave it to a family business. You have to build it into an institution that will long outlive not only you, your family, your Distant heirs, but maybe race for time itself. Ludwig was the Nobel brother who proved Alfred's lesson wrong. While Alfred was racing between laboratories in search of a stable solution to the nitroglycerin problem, Ludwig had built a different for fortune on a different liquid oil. He built one of the largest companies in the world.
The Nobel Brothers Petroleum Company operated in Baku, which is now in Azerbaijan. At its peak, it produced 50% of the world's oil. Ludwig was sometimes called the Russian Rockefeller. Strange because he wasn't Russian, but the company was in latter day Russia. On April 12, 1888, Ludwig had a heart attack while visiting Cannes, France. He was only 56 years old. Three days later, April 15, 1888, the newspaper Le Figaro, one of the biggest in all of Europe, printed Ludwig's obituary. Except it wasn't.
The newspaper committed the gravest editorial sin. They got two different men confused in an obituary. Now, most retellings of this story will tell you that the headline read in French, the merchant of death is dead. La marchand de la mort es morteg. That's even the version Nobel laureate Al Gore quoted in his Peace prize acceptance in 2007.
119 years ago, a wealthy inventor read his own obituary, mistakenly published years before his death, wrongly believing the inventor had just died. A newspaper printed a harsh judgment of his life's work, unfairly labeling him the Merchant of Death because of his invention, dynamite.
It's in Wikipedia, it's in dozens of biographies. But it's not clear if that ever happened. Historians have searched French newspaper archives for a hundred years and they still haven't found it. The phrase exists only in the retelling of the story. But there's a kernel of truth behind it. Because what we do have is the actual death notice itself. A Figaro, April 15, 1888. Page one, it says, A man who can hardly be called a benefactor of humanity and died yesterday.
In Comm. It is Mr. Nobel, inventor of dynamite. Talk about fake news. Now, to give him credit, the paper retracted it the next day. They had confused the two brothers, but Alfred Nobel was very much alive and living in Paris. To quote Mark Twain, reports of my demise have been slightly exaggerated. Everyone read that newspaper.
It's impossible to think that Alfred didn't see it. It would be like you missing one of my banger tweets on X. And here's what the milder, real version of the story actually does, that the dramatized myth, the folklore doesn't do. The myth makes it sound like the editors were gleeful. But the real Notice is actually colder than that. It said that this man Alfred, in dying, had not improved the world one bit, despite being one of the wealthiest men on earth, worth more than a quarter of a billion dollars in today's money. It's devastating because it's actually more measured, more thoughtful about the verdict, sober as it was, editorializing Alfred's death and the seeming meaninglessness of his passing. But what it did give is a gift to Alfred, saying exactly what the educated reading public of Europe would think about him when he actually did die.
Now hold these four deaths in your head at once. Emil, killed by the substance Alfred would later make safe and commercialize. Emmanuel, the patriarch, the man who lost everything despite changing the world. Dying of a broken heart eight years to the day after his son's death. Ludwig, the businessman who built an empire of oil and triggered through his own death the accidental editorial verdict on Alfred's life. And then eventually Alfred did die. But that wouldn't come for nearly a decade. He read that verdict and now he had to decide what to do with whatever time was left to him.
They say to write your will the day before you die. Alfred didn't do that, but he came close. There's a name for this type of experience, the one I hinted at the very beginning of the video. It's one of the oldest narrative devices in all of human literature and storytelling. This one's true. A man sees the world's verdict on his life before the verdict is final. He's given a chance to rewrite the ending before it's etched in stone. Charles Dickens wrote about it in 1843.
You know it as A Christmas Carol. Scrooge sees his own grave and the indifference of the men who knew him, and he redeems himself. Frank Capra remade it in 1946 as it's a Wonderful Wife. George Bailey given the chance to see what the world looks like without him in it. A second chance, a second lease on life, only brought possible through fictional near death experiences. Now, as a physicist, I'm quite doubtful about the claims of the paranormal type of near death experiences. And these stories, unlike the paranormal versions, for the price of a movie ticket or a paperback, give us what religions have always tried to give us a sense of what the meaning of life is, while we still have time to do it from this side of the grave. That's the secret to the success of that type of genre.
The point of these stories is never the supernatural mechanism. The quantum mechanical collapse of the wave function, the lack of falsifiability of the claims that most paranormal encounters with death fail to substantiate. The point is the part where the protagonist is still alive. A chance to redeem himself. Alfred Nobel got the real version. He got it in La Figaro on a Sunday morning in 1888, with no Christmas ghosts and no guardian angels needed. And he had something Scrooge and George Bailey are only allowed to imagine. He had time.
He could act. He was on this side of the ground. On November 27, 1895, at the Swedish Norwegian Club in Paris, Alfred Nobel did just that. He signed a one page handwritten will. Here's what it looks like. Less than a thousand words, but over a century of impact. His will set aside 94% of his entire worldly estate, the equivalent of more than a quarter billion dollars in today's money. This was to be used to fund a series of annual prizes.
The annual prizes specified were five in number. Physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, which is one category, Literature and peace. The prizes were to be given in his words, and I've read the will many times, to those persons, singular people, who in the preceding year have conferred the greatest benefit to mankind. It actually says mankind in the will itself. But if you go to the Nobel Foundation's website, they've changed what he wrote to say, humankind, presumably for some politically correct purpose. Notice the language. Nevertheless, there's an exact parallel between the French editorial about Alfred Nobel mistakenly attributed to him, which resonates around the term benefit to mankind. That's a direct response to the obituary.
It couldn't be clearer that this near death experience horrified him. The obituary said Alfred cannot be called a benefactor of humanity. And here in the will, he's leaving an enormous fortune to do just that. He said, I will be remembered for the people I helped, for the world that I benefited for the benefit of all mankind. He turned the editorial verdict against him into a powerful criterion of the prize itself, one that still exists to this day. That's the writing of a man who read what was said about him and decided to write his own last will and testament. As Lin Miranda says in Hamilton, who lives, who dies, who tells your story. It was driven by the man who had buried three members of his family and cut his own family out of most of the estate.
Now, he was never married. There's another apocryphal story about him, that there's no Nobel Prize in math because his wife cheated on Alfred with a mathematician. Total lie, Never happened, didn't have a wife. He insisted, though, that the prize be given, not taking into Account nationality. At the time, that was almost heretical. Nation states were so powerful, obsessed with themselves in Europe, that he didn't want it to be captured by any single dynasty. Now, because he watched his father's family business collapse, he was determined not to leave this to chance. And he also had taken the lesson of his older brother, Ludwig.
For all his oil fortune, he left something that would later be confiscated by the Bolsheviks in the Russian Revolution in 1918. There were no safeguards to save that family fortune. Alfred wanted something neither bankruptcy nor the winds of a war and revolution could ever blow away. Alfred died 14 months later, not the day after his will was written, but close to it. He died in San Remo, Italy, on December 10, 1896. And that day will come into play in just a bit. After his death, the will was contested by his family for years. The first Nobel Prize was not granted until 1901.
And in the giving of the first Nobel Prize, there's another connection to death. Wilhelm Renjen had a wife named Bertha. He invented the X ray machine, a device that certainly has been responsible for the benefit of mankind. If you've ever had a toothache or a broken bone, you've benefited from Wilhelm Rendgen's X ray machine. But his wife, who was the first patient or victim, depending on how you look at it, to be exposed to X rays and have her hand photographed on a photographic plate. When she saw her ring finger and the bones within her hand, she exclaimed, aghast, I have seen my death. Another brush with death, courtesy of the Nobel Prize. Now, here's another detail that most people don't know.
The Nobel Prize is held every year to honor Alfred Nobel on his death day, December 10th, not his birthday. And the ceremony at the Stockholm banquet hall, where the prizes are given out, are decorated in resplendent flowers that are imported from Alfred Nobel's mausoleum in San Remo, the very town where he died. Because death is inseparable from Alfred Nobel and the Nobel prizes that bear his name. Now, hold that detail, because in a moment, I'm going to tell you about a different set of his wishes, written down, signed, witnessed, sealed, that the foundation has not honored as carefully as they should have. I have a personal stake in this story. In 2014, a team that I had helped to found, called Bicep, announced what we thought was the discovery of all time, one that was sure to win us the Nobel Prize in physics. We claimed we had detected gravitational waves from the inflationary epoch from a trillionth of a trillionth of a trillionth of a second following the Big Bang. We were wrong.
We didn't see the birth pangs of the Big Bang. The signal that we saw was contaminated by interstellar dust. Six months later, after collaborating with our competitors in the Planck satellite, we retracted the claim. Four years later, I wrote a book about that experience. It's called Losing the Nobel Prize. Spoiler alert. But in the process of writing that book, I read Alfred Nobel's will more carefully than most people ever have. I actually went to Stockholm.
I sat in the rooms where the decisions are made. I asked the tough questions. I was even asked to nominate winners of the Nobel Prize twice in my career. That was before I wrote the book. I'll probably never get another invitation again. But that's okay. Because what I came to argue in that book, and I want to be careful about what I say here because I have great respect for the institution of the Nobel Prize. Maybe not the way it's exactly executed to this day.
And I certainly have gratitude and respect for the many people have won the prize. 22 so far have come on my podcast link down below. But I have to be honest. The Nobel committee has strayed quite far from what Alfred Nobel actually asked for in his will. Again, the will says the prize must go to the person who, during the preceding year, made an invention or discovery that conferred the greatest benefit to humankind. In practice, it goes sometimes goes decades after the fact to a maximum of three people, not one. For work that was almost certainly done by teams of dozens, hundreds, maybe even thousands of other people. The will says nothing about teams.
And you can't win it if you're dead. Which is ironic for a prize that's so unquestionably associated with death. Alfred's will said nothing about excluding the dead. But that's become standard practice again, made up by the Nobel committee themselves. If that were not true, Rosalind Franklin would have shared the DNA prize Vera Rubin would have surely won for the discovery of dark matter. But they didn't. Because they were dead. The foundation honors his death day.
They ship flowers from across the world from his death town and his death chamber to the ceremony that they celebrate on his death day. They get those things right, but they get some harder things wrong. In most world religions, the wishes of the dead are sacrosanct. They're sacred. Honoring them is one of the highest ethical obligations that a person can do for someone who's passed away. After all, the dead can't speak for themselves. They can't defend their legacy. They rely and they trust on future generations to honor their own intentions.
So the rest of us are bound to that honor. It's a sacred duty to do what they asked us to do. And in violating that in many important ways, the Nobel Committee is ignoring the wishes of the death across cultures. Betraying the wishes of someone who can no longer defend themselves is a grave, grave ethical sin. Alfred Nobel can't defend himself anymore. The committee can. And I think that the committee owes a deeper reading and a more close following of what he actually wrote. So you may be surprised to learn that a physicist believes in near death experiences.
Not the tunnel of light, not the hovering above the hospital bed, not the loved ones weeping or wailing over how they were excluded from their will. But the four deaths that taught a man through experience what his own death would mean. And we have something that he has too, while we're still alive to do it. We can write a different ending if we're unsatisfied with the story we've written so far. Write your will the day before you die. Alfred Nobel got an extra eight years from his brother's death to his own. Most of us hopefully have a lot more. The question is, what are you going to do at that time? If you want the longer story about the will, the committee, the prize, and the cosmology, read my cosmic memoir, Losing the Nobel Prize.
You can find it anywhere books are sold, and it was voted one of Amazon's best nonfiction books. Subscribe for the next video and you'll learn something new, perhaps about crop circles or catamutilation or alien abduction. Until next time, Brian Keating, Chancellor's Distinguished professor of Physics at UC San Diego and host of the into the Impossible podcast. See you next time.
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🔖 Titles
The Near-Death Experience That Changed Science: Lessons from Alfred Nobel’s Life and Legacy
Why a Renowned Physicist Believes in Near-Death Experiences—But Not the Paranormal Kind
Alfred Nobel’s True Near-Death Experience and the Real Origins of the Nobel Prize
Death, Legacy, and Science: What Alfred Nobel’s Story Teaches Us About Meaning
The Untold Connection Between Near-Death Experiences and the Invention of the Nobel Prize
The Real Near-Death Experience That Transformed Alfred Nobel—and Science
From Tragedy to Triumph: How Death Shaped the Nobel Prize’s History
A Physicist Explores Near-Death, Legacy, and Alfred Nobel’s Profound Encounter
How a Mistaken Obituary and Family Tragedy Created the Nobel Prize
Near-Death, Invention, and Legacy: The Untold Story Behind the Nobel Prize
💬 Keywords
astrophysicist, near death experiences, paranormal, alien abductions, crop circles, Nobel Prize, Alfred Nobel, nitroglycerin, dynamite, Emmanuel Nobel, family business, Ludwig Nobel, Nobel Brothers Petroleum Company, oil industry, Crimean War, French obituary, legacy, will and testament, scientific discovery, benefit to mankind, Nobel Foundation, Nobel Prize categories, X rays, Wilhelm Röntgen, Bertha Röntgen, Rosalind Franklin, Vera Rubin, dark matter, ethical obligations, honoring the dead, Losing the Nobel Prize
ℹ️ Introduction
Introduction
The conversation focused on the surprising intersection of science, mortality, and legacy, as an astrophysicist explores why he believes in near-death experiences—not the paranormal kind full of tunnels of light and out-of-body journeys, but a transformative, real-life event that reshaped scientific history. One concept discussed was Alfred Nobel's encounter with his own premature obituary, an episode that forced him to confront his legacy and inspired the creation of the Nobel Prizes. A key theme that emerged was the ways in which personal loss, brushes with death, and the verdicts of history can shape lasting institutions. The discussion explored the moral architecture behind Nobel’s will, the prizes that bear his name, and the ethical obligations to honor the wishes of those no longer able to defend themselves. Several points were raised, including the enduring impact of Nobel’s decisions, controversies surrounding the Nobel Prize’s execution today, and the challenge of finding meaning—while we’re still alive to change the course of our own stories.
📚 Timestamped overview
00:00 The story explains the origins of the Nobel Prizes by exploring the Nobel family's history, focusing on Alfred Nobel and his siblings, set against the backdrop of a significant event in Paris in 1888.
04:46 The text discusses the importance of creating enduring institutions rather than relying on family businesses to preserve wealth and legacy, illustrated by Ludwig Nobel's success in building a major company compared to Alfred Nobel's individual efforts.
07:44 The passage discusses the stark and sobering nature of the real obituary for Alfred, which criticized him for not improving the world despite his wealth, and how this assessment served as a grim wake-up call to his legacy, contrasting with the misleadingly cheerful myth.
09:42 The text discusses how stories like A Christmas Carol and It's a Wonderful Life use fictional near death experiences to explore the meaning of life and redemption, offering audiences a perspective on life's significance without relying on paranormal claims.
15:06 The Nobel Prize ceremony on December 10th honors Alfred Nobel with flowers from his mausoleum, contrasting with unfulfilled aspects of his wishes, while the author's personal experience with the Bicep project highlights a mistaken announcement of discovering gravitational waves linked to the Big Bang.
19:08 This section discusses how experiencing four deaths prompted a man to realize the importance of shaping his life's legacy, encouraging readers to actively change their life's narrative if unsatisfactory, as exemplified by Alfred Nobel's actions after his brother's death.
19:49 The text discusses finding a recommended nonfiction book on Amazon and invites viewers to subscribe for future videos on topics like crop circles and alien phenomena, hosted by Brian Keating, a UC San Diego professor.
📚 Timestamped overview
00:00 The origins of the Nobel Prize
04:46 Ludwig Nobel's oil empire lesson
07:44 The legacy and death of Alfred
09:42 Seeing Life's Second Chances
15:06 Nobel Prize ceremony traditions
19:08 Reflections on mortality and legacy
19:49 Book availability and next episode teaser
❇️ Key topics and bullets
Sequence of Topics Covered
Introduction: A Physicist’s Take on Near-Death Experiences
Discussion of skepticism towards paranormal phenomena (alien abductions, crop circles, typical NDEs)
Introduction of belief in a specific, historically significant near-death experience
Emphasis on a non-paranormal, impactful NDE as the episode’s focus 00:00:00
Background and Mythology of Near-Death Experiences
Typical narratives: white light, out-of-body experiences, and seeing loved ones 00:00:29
Skeptical scientific perspective on these accounts
Setting the stage for the unique story to follow
The Nobel Family’s History and Tragedy
Alfred Nobel’s family tree and roles of his siblings 00:01:32
The death of Emil Nobel in a nitroglycerin explosion at the family factory 00:01:59
Details of nitroglycerin’s instability and history
The Invention of Dynamite and Its Consequences
Alfred Nobel’s efforts to make nitroglycerin safer 00:02:54
Patent and creation of dynamite 00:03:07
Wealth resulting from dynamite and its deadly legacy
The Rise and Fall of Emmanuel Nobel
Emmanuel Nobel’s inventions and career successes 00:03:40
Downfall following the end of the Crimean War and the loss of contracts 00:04:02
Emotional and physical decline, death coinciding with his son’s death anniversary 00:04:29
Lessons Learned: Wealth, Legacy, and Structure
Importance of building lasting institutions over family businesses 00:04:46
Contrasting stories: Ludwig’s oil empire versus Alfred’s scientific breakthroughs 00:05:16
The Mistaken Obituary: Alfred Nobel’s Living Verdict
Ludwig Nobel’s death and mistaken obituary in Le Figaro 00:05:51
The “merchant of death” headline myth versus reality and actual obituary content 00:07:11
Public and personal impact of the obituary 00:07:44
Deaths Shaping Alfred Nobel’s Legacy
Recap of four influential deaths in Alfred Nobel’s life 00:08:38
Reflection: Living with foreknowledge of how one will be remembered 00:09:13
The Narrative Device of “Living One’s Own Obituary”
Parallels to literary and cinematic stories (A Christmas Carol, It’s a Wonderful Life) 00:09:29
Reflection on meaning and redemption found through these narratives
Nobel’s Will and Vision for the Nobel Prizes
Alfred Nobel’s actions in response to the obituary: drafting his will 00:11:02
Details of the will: allocation of his estate, the five prize categories 00:11:31
Criteria for the prize: benefiting mankind, language of the will 00:11:53
The Editorial Judgment and Nobel’s Response
Direct response to his perceived legacy through the prize criteria 00:12:21
Emphasis on legacy over family inheritance 00:13:02
Notes on nationality, apocryphal stories, and ensuring independence from nation states 00:13:21
The Nobel Prizes and the Shadow of Death
Scheduling the Nobel Prize ceremony on Alfred Nobel’s death day 00:15:06
Symbolic use of flowers from his mausoleum in San Remo
Contesting Nobel’s Legacy and Wishes
Nobel Prize implementation versus the explicit details of Alfred Nobel’s will
Controversies: team versus individual recognition, limits on posthumous awards 00:17:03
Noted exclusions: Rosalind Franklin, Vera Rubin 00:17:54
The Ethical Obligation to Honor the Will of the Dead
Ethical discussion around respecting the intentions and wishes of the deceased 00:18:18
Critique of the Nobel Committee’s practices regarding the original will 00:18:37
Framing the honoring of legacies as a sacred duty
Final Reflections: Meaning, Legacy, and Action
Broader contemplation on life, legacy, and the ability to change one’s story while alive 00:19:08
Encouragement to act meaningfully before it’s too late
Personal story and cosmic perspective on the Nobel Prize experience 00:16:46, 00:19:42
👩💻 LinkedIn post
Why a Physicist Believes in Near-Death Experiences — And What the Nobel Prize Has to Do With It
As an astrophysicist, skepticism toward the paranormal comes with the territory. But there’s one type of "near-death experience" that dramatically reshaped science — and the world.
In the latest episode of The INTO THE IMPOSSIBLE Podcast, the origin story of the Nobel Prize reveals itself not as the result of a supernatural event, but a profound moment of self-confrontation: Alfred Nobel reading his own mistaken obituary, reflecting on the legacy he would someday leave behind, and making the conscious choice to rewrite his story.
3 Key Takeaways:
Moments of Reflection Can Shift History: Alfred Nobel’s encounter with his own pre-mature obituary in 1888 07:11 became a catalyst prompting him to establish the Nobel Prizes as a "benefit to mankind" 11:41.
Institutional Legacy Outlasts Personal Wealth: Nobel recognized that lasting impact requires building institutions with clear structures — not just amassing personal or family wealth 04:46.
Honor the True Intent Behind Legacies: The exact wishes set forth by Nobel in his will — such as awarding living individuals for discoveries made in the preceding year — are often bent or ignored by institutions today, raising questions about how we honor the wishes of those who have passed 17:13.
Let Nobel’s story serve as a reminder: we each have the opportunity to shape the legacy we leave behind, and sometimes, it takes a brush with our own mortality (literal or metaphorical) to set that change in motion.
#Legacy #NobelPrize #Leadership #ScienceHistory #Podcast
🧵 Tweet thread
The Untold Story of the Real Near Death Experience That Created the Nobel Prize 🧵
1/ The conversation focused on the origins of the Nobel Prize—not as a dry piece of history, but as a story of personal tragedy, mistaken identity, and a rare, real-life near death experience that changed scientific history 00:00:10.
2/ One concept discussed was the tragic death of Emil Nobel, Alfred’s youngest brother, killed by the very substance their family sought to tame: nitroglycerin. This loss set Alfred Nobel on a quest to make the deadly liquid safer—leading to the invention of dynamite 00:02:32.
3/ The discussion explored the family’s saga: bankruptcy after their patriarch’s inventions lost value, devastating personal losses, and business empires built and lost with the tides of history 00:04:11.
4/ A key theme that emerged was the obituary mistake that sparked Nobel’s transformation. In 1888, a major Paris newspaper published an obituary for Alfred—alive and well at the time—branding him not a benefactor, but a man whose life's work had benefited no one 00:07:11.
5/ Several points were raised, including the legend of the “merchant of death” headline and the cold reality behind it: Europe saw Nobel as a man who, despite fortune, had not improved the world. Alfred read this verdict on himself before his actual death 00:08:05.
6/ This near death encounter—seeing how he’d be remembered—gave Nobel something most people never receive: a chance to rewrite his legacy while still alive 00:09:39.
7/ The conversation compared Nobel’s epiphany to classic stories like Dickens’ A Christmas Carol and It's a Wonderful Life: protagonists who glimpse the world after their own passing and get a second chance 00:09:42.
8/ Nobel’s radical solution? He left 94% of his immense fortune to fund a series of annual prizes for those who “conferred the greatest benefit to mankind” in physics, chemistry, medicine, literature, and peace—not for family, not for self, but for the world 00:11:19.
9/ The discussion explored how the Nobel committee has, over time, sometimes strayed from Alfred’s explicit wishes: awarding the prize decades late, ignoring team efforts, and barring posthumous awards—none of which his will stipulated 00:17:13.
10/ A profound takeaway: death is inseparable from both the origin and ceremony of the Nobel Prize. Each year, winners gather on the anniversary of Nobel’s death, surrounded by flowers shipped from his mausoleum 00:15:13.
11/ The thread concludes with a challenge: we, like Nobel, have a chance to change how our stories are written—before it’s too late. History’s verdict isn’t final until time runs out 00:19:25.
12/ If you want the deeper story of ambition, loss, and the cosmic stakes of scientific glory, check out “Losing the Nobel Prize.” What will your legacy be? #NobelPrize #History #Science
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Episode Highlight: Physicist: Why I Believe in Near-Death Experiences
Curious about near-death experiences… from the perspective of a hard-nosed scientist? In the latest episode of the INTO THE IMPOSSIBLE Podcast, the conversation focused on one of the most extraordinary “near-death experiences”—but not the kind you might expect.
Why Would a Physicist Believe?
The discussion explored how an astrophysicist, who typically dismisses the paranormal, finds truth in a very different kind of near-death event: the formative moments that led Alfred Nobel, inventor of dynamite, to create the Nobel Prizes. Several points were raised, including the legendary misprinted obituary that allowed Nobel to read the world’s judgement on his own life, effectively giving him a second chance to shape his legacy 00:06:09.
Lessons from Nobel’s Journey
One concept discussed was how Nobel’s experience—reading his own premature obituary—became a real-life version of the classic narrative device: seeing the verdict on your life before the end, and making changes while you still have time 00:09:13. A key theme that emerged was the profound ethical responsibility we hold to honor the legacies of those who have passed, likening the Nobel Foundation’s annual ceremony to the rituals that bridge life and death 00:15:06.
Behind the Prize
The conversation also examined how Nobel’s will intended for the prizes to be given for discoveries that conferred the “greatest benefit to mankind” in the preceding year, a stipulation that has often been overlooked by the committee in practice 00:17:08. The newsletter highlights how the Nobel Foundation’s choices both honor and sometimes stray from Alfred Nobel’s original vision.
Reflections:
This episode invites listeners to consider what legacy they would want to leave—and how moments of reflection, whether triggered by crisis or contemplation, give everyone the chance to course-correct before it’s too late.
Want the full story, including personal stakes and details about lost discoveries?
Listen to the full episode and check out the thought-provoking memoir Losing the Nobel Prize, mentioned in the show!
Stay curious,
The INTO THE IMPOSSIBLE Team
Subscribe for more deep dives into science, philosophy, and the stories that shape history and our future.
❓ Questions
Discussion Questions
The conversation focused on Alfred Nobel's real-life "near death experience" of reading his own mistaken obituary. How did this event shape the legacy he chose to leave behind, and in what ways does it differ from more traditional or paranormal accounts of near-death experiences?
One concept discussed was the ethical importance of honoring the wishes of the deceased. How does the episode challenge or reinforce the idea that posthumous wishes should be sacrosanct across cultures?
The discussion explored the origins of the Nobel Prize, including Alfred Nobel’s motivations. What lessons about legacy and impact can be drawn from Nobel's response to his public reputation?
A key theme that emerged was the contrast between fictional stories like "A Christmas Carol" and Nobel’s true story. How do storytelling and historical events differently shape cultural understanding of redemption and second chances?
Several points were raised, including the impact of misattributed stories and myths—such as the "merchant of death" headline. How do myths and inaccuracies in popular histories affect our perception of historical figures?
The episode raised questions about the selection process and criteria of the Nobel Prize today. How has the execution of Nobel's original will diverged from its intended purpose?
The connection between invention, legacy, and unintended consequences was examined through the lives of Nobel and his family. In what ways does the family’s story illustrate the unpredictable nature of scientific and technological advancement?
The conversation touched on the importance of structuring one's wealth and legacy to outlast personal and political upheavals. What modern parallels can be drawn regarding inheritance, philanthropy, and institutional legacies?
The episode highlighted issues of exclusion in the Nobel Prize, such as deceased scientists being ineligible for recognition. What are the ethical implications of these policies, and should they be reconsidered?
The talk ended with a reflection on rewriting the ending of one’s own story while still alive. How might this perspective influence individual choices about career, legacy, and the impact one wishes to have on humanity?
curiosity, value fast, hungry for more
✅ What if an astrophysicist told you he believes in near-death experiences?
✅ In this episode of The INTO THE IMPOSSIBLE Podcast, Prof. Brian Keating reveals why one extraordinary near-death story changed science forever.
✅ Discover the true, dramatic origin of the Nobel Prize—rooted in tragedy, mistaken obituaries, and a second chance at legacy.
✅ Sometimes, getting a glimpse of your own ending is what it takes to rewrite history—don’t miss this unforgettable perspective!
Conversation Starters
Conversation Starters for Facebook Group Discussion
The episode suggests that Alfred Nobel’s "near-death experience" wasn’t supernatural, but reading his own mistaken obituary. How do you think experiencing your public legacy before you die could shape your actions?
The discussion explored how Nobel’s infamous obituary influenced the creation of the Nobel Prizes. Do you believe it’s possible to rewrite your legacy in your lifetime? Why or why not?
One concept discussed was the ethical duty to honor the wishes of the deceased. Should institutions be strictly bound to founders’ original intentions, or can traditions evolve with time?
Several points were raised, including the discrepancy between Nobel’s will and how the prizes are awarded today. Do you think the Nobel Committee should change its rules to align more closely with Nobel’s original wishes?
The conversation focused on the connection between death and legacy in science. How does contemplating mortality influence creativity or ethical choices in your life or profession?
The episode challenges the common narrative around "paranormal" near-death experiences. What do you think: can transformative episodes rooted in real-life circumstances be as impactful as mystical ones?
A key theme that emerged was the importance of institutionalizing impact versus leaving a legacy to family. How do you think Nobel’s choices compare to other historical figures who tried to secure their legacies?
The discussion explored mistakes in public perception, such as the "Merchant of Death" headline that Alfred Nobel never actually received. How do myths and misreporting shape our understanding of historical figures?
The show raised the issue of Nobel Prizes being awarded only to living individuals. Should posthumous recognition be allowed, especially when scientific contributions are often collaborative and span decades?
If you could read your own obituary today, how do you think it would affect your current life decisions? Would you want this kind of "near-death" insight? Why or why not?
🐦 Business Lesson Tweet Thread
1
What if you read your own obituary—before you died—and hated what it said? That actually happened. It changed the world.
2
Alfred Nobel, inventor of dynamite, opened a newspaper and saw himself described as a villain: not a "benefactor of humanity," just destruction.
3
That stung. It was honest. It forced reflection.
4
He realized being inventive or rich doesn’t mean your work matters. If you want to be remembered, you need purpose and structure, not just innovation.
5
Nobel rewrote his ending. He used nearly all his fortune to reward those who truly benefit humankind. He built an institution, not a family business.
6
Lesson: Sometimes, the most valuable feedback is brutally public and utterly true. Use it.
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Before your story is over, you get to choose what the final chapter says. Write it yourself.
✏️ Custom Newsletter
🚀 INTO THE IMPOSSIBLE Podcast — New Episode Out Now! 🚀
Physicist: Why I Believe in Near-Death Experiences
Hey friends,
We’ve just dropped an extraordinary new episode of the INTO THE IMPOSSIBLE Podcast—one that dives deep into the story behind the Nobel Prize, brushes with death, and how history’s most important near-death experience shaped the modern world. You don’t want to miss this one!
What’s Inside This Episode?
🔑 5 Keys You’ll Learn:
The Real Origin of the Nobel Prize: Unpack the dramatic events in Alfred Nobel’s life that led to the most prestigious prize in science and peace.
How Death Reshaped Legacy: Explore how Nobel’s accidental obituary gave him a real-life “second chance” and inspired his monumental will.
The Dark Side of Invention: Discover how the race to tame nitroglycerin and the quest for safety led to both tragedy and triumph within the Nobel family.
The Fascinating Flaws of the Nobel Committee: Learn why today’s Nobel Prize rules stray from Nobel’s original intentions—and the ethical dilemmas that creates.
Lessons for Your Own Life: Find out why rewriting your story before it’s too late isn’t just for famous scientists—it’s for everyone.
🤓 Fun Fact
Did you know the Nobel Prizes are awarded on Alfred Nobel’s death day, not his birthday? And the flowers at the ceremony are shipped every year from his mausoleum in San Remo, tying the celebration back to the very place where his story ended—and legacy began. Now that’s a power move!
Before You Go…
If you’ve ever wondered what your own “editorial verdict” might say—or just love a juicy mix of science, history, and philosophy—this episode is absolutely for you.
🎧 Listen to the latest episode now… and maybe bring a notepad. There’s wisdom here you’ll want to remember!
➡️ Subscribe to the INTO THE IMPOSSIBLE Podcast for future episodes, and share your thoughts or favorite insights with us—your feedback makes the impossible possible!
To more discoveries,
The INTO THE IMPOSSIBLE Team
🎓 Lessons Learned
1. Questioning Paranormal Experiences
Scientific skepticism applies to near-death experiences, with emphasis on critical investigation rather than belief in the supernatural.
2. Tragedy Inspires Innovation
Personal loss—Emil's death—motivated Alfred Nobel to make nitroglycerin safer, indirectly leading to the invention of dynamite.
3. Wealth without Structure Fades
Building institutions is essential; family fortunes dissipate without proper frameworks, as shown by the Nobels' experiences.
4. Reputation Can Outlive Wealth
Public perception, like Nobel's mistaken obituary, shapes legacy more strongly than material riches alone.
5. Learn From Life’s Verdicts
A preview of one’s legacy, as Nobel saw, offers a chance to change and impact the future meaningfully.
6. Institution Over Inheritance
Structures like the Nobel Prizes can endure and benefit humanity far beyond the lifespan of their founders and families.
7. Transform Criticism into Progress
Harsh judgment can fuel positive change, as Nobel channelled condemnation into creating enduring rewards for human achievement.
8. Honor the Wishes of the Dead
Upholding testaments and final wishes is a sacred ethical duty, often ignored to the detriment of original intent.
9. Importance of Correct Attribution
Properly crediting discoveries and teamwork remains a problem, as current Nobel practices deviate from Alfred Nobel’s original vision.
10. Use Time to Create Legacy
Awareness of mortality is motivation—everyone can strive to create meaning and improve their story while alive.
10 Surprising and Useful Frameworks and Takeaways
Ten Most Surprising and Useful Frameworks & Takeaways
1. A Scientific Take on Near-Death Experiences
The conversation focused on a physicist’s skepticism toward paranormal near-death experiences, yet belief in a unique, non-paranormal “near-death experience”: Alfred Nobel’s reading of his own obituary and subsequent transformation 00:00:10. This narrative reframes what it means to learn from metaphorical brushes with death, placing emphasis on meaning rather than supernatural claims.
2. The “Living Obituary” Framework
One concept discussed was how seeing the public verdict on one’s life before actual death (a “living obituary”) can serve as a deeply motivating, transformative event 00:09:19. This offers a tool for self-reflection: consider what would be written about you if you died tomorrow, and use that perspective to guide changes while you still have time.
3. Lesson: Wealth Without Structure Evaporates
A key theme that emerged was the impermanence of fortune if not tied to robust institutions. Nobel learned from his father’s downfall that to ensure his legacy, he needed to establish an enduring institution (the Nobel Prize), rather than leave his wealth to a family business 00:04:46.
4. Benefit to Mankind as a Measurement of Contribution
The discussion explored Nobel’s criteria for the Prize: conferring the “greatest benefit to mankind” 00:11:53. This challenges listeners to measure their own work by its broader impact, not just personal gain or recognition.
5. Use of Tragedy as Motivation
Several points were raised, including how personal and family tragedies—four transformative deaths—shaped Nobel’s decisions and philosophy 00:08:38. Tragedy, in this framework, becomes a catalyst for positive, far-reaching action.
6. Write Your Will the Day Before You Die
A surprising practical takeaway is the advice to “write your will the day before you die”—not literally, but as a continual process to clarify what you value and the legacy you intend to leave 00:09:13. Periodically reviewing and updating life goals and intentions keeps priorities sharp.
7. Storytelling as a Universal Tool for Meaning
The episode emphasized how classic narratives (like Dickens’s A Christmas Carol) use fictional “near-death experiences” as opportunities for characters to achieve redemption and reevaluate their lives 00:09:42. Applying narrative thinking to real life can prompt meaningful change and legacy thinking.
8. The Danger of Straying from Founders’ Intentions
A key issue highlighted was the Nobel Committee’s drift from the original intentions of Alfred Nobel’s will—such as delaying the award long after a discovery and excluding deceased scientists, neither of which is aligned with the will 00:17:08. This serves as both a warning and a framework: organizations should continually reference and respect their founding principles.
9. Ethic of Honoring the Wishes of the Dead
A deeply moral takeaway is the ethical imperative to honor the stated wishes of those who have passed, since they can no longer defend their intentions 00:18:18. This framework can guide not just individuals and families, but also institutions and societies.
10. Turning Criticism into Criteria for Self-Improvement
Finally, Nobel’s transformation of editorial criticism—“not a benefactor of humanity”—into the Nobel Prize’s striving for “greatest benefit to mankind” is a model for using criticism constructively. Adopting unfavorable feedback and directly addressing it can turn potential shame into noble motivation 00:12:17.
These frameworks combine practical, ethical, and inspirational elements, providing lenses not only for personal growth but also for shaping and repairing institutions, legacies, and societal norms.
Clip Able
1. Title: "The Only Near-Death Experience a Physicist Believes In"
Timestamps: 00:00 – 03:07
Caption:
Most near-death experiences seem paranormal—but there's one that changed scientific history and convinced even an astrophysicist. Discover the story that inspired the Nobel Prize and shook the science world.
2. Title: "How Tragedy and Mistaken Identity Created the Nobel Prize"
Timestamps: 03:07 – 06:09
Caption:
From a fatal factory accident to the world's most famous editorial blunder, dive into the real near-death story that led Alfred Nobel to reshape his legacy—and science forever.
3. Title: "Alfred Nobel’s Real Redemption Story"
Timestamps: 06:09 – 09:13
Caption:
What happens when you read your own obituary? Find out how Alfred Nobel’s brush with death, public judgment, and family loss inspired him to create a prize for the benefit of all humanity.
4. Title: "The True Purpose Behind the Nobel Prize"
Timestamps: 09:13 – 12:21
Caption:
Alfred Nobel didn’t just want to reward greatness. The Nobel Prizes were his answer to the world’s verdict on his life. See how death, legacy, and purpose are all intertwined in the most coveted awards in science and literature.
5. Title: "Honoring the Wishes of the Dead: The Nobel Committee’s Dilemma"
Timestamps: 15:06 – 18:07
Caption:
Are the Nobel Prizes living up to their founder’s vision? Explore the ethical debate, the modern challenges, and why honoring the intentions of those who are gone still matters today.
💡 Speaker bios
Brian Keating is a renowned astrophysicist at one of the world’s top universities, known for his scientific rigor and skepticism toward the paranormal. Despite his disbelief in phenomena like alien abductions and crop circles, Brian has had a pivotal shift in his perspective when it comes to near death experiences. Unlike most scientists who dismiss such events as paranormal, Brian not only believes in them but is also compelled to share the significance of a particular near death experience he considers the most important of all—one that has profoundly influenced his outlook and that he passionately encourages others to understand.
💡 Speaker bios
Brian Keating is an astrophysicist at one of the world’s premier universities, known for his scientific rigor and skepticism toward the paranormal. While he dismisses phenomena like alien abductions, cattle mutilations, and crop circles, Keating stands out for his unconventional belief in near death experiences. Despite his scientific background, he passionately believes in the reality of near death experiences, including one that he considers the most important of all—inviting others to reconsider what is possible, even in the world of hard science.
💡 Speaker bios
Brian Keating is an astrophysicist at one of the world’s leading universities, devoted to scientific inquiry and skeptical of the paranormal. While he dismisses tales of alien abductions, cattle mutilation, and crop circles, Keating holds a unique conviction: he believes in the phenomenon of near death experiences (NDEs). Unlike most stories that surround NDEs, which he knows are often labeled as paranormal, Keating is compelled by one particular experience—so significant, he urges others to believe in it as well. His perspective bridges rigorous science and the profound mysteries of human consciousness.
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