[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"$f-DsR25nsijVnpdiE57nvZULuhlILjM5cSQvvNTC-jLM":3,"$ftlcbjgn9Dr6zhoo61ZFjGnEkJwUe5gpLapXIsANy1jk":51},{"author":4,"tags":50},{"author_id":5,"author_name":6,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"bio":9,"short_bio":10,"bio_jsonld":11,"slug":48,"image_url":49},175379,"Vladimir Prelog","V",8,"The 1975 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, awarded to Vladimir Prelog, stands as the defining recognition of a career devoted to organic chemistry.\n\nPrelog was born on July 23, 1906, in Sarajevo, a citizen of Austria-Hungary by birth. He attended the III Gymnasium in Osijek before pursuing his higher education at the Czech Technical University in Prague. A Croatian-Swiss organic chemist by identification, he held citizenship over the course of his life in Austria-Hungary, the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, and Switzerland. He also worked as a university teacher and as an engineer. He died in Zurich on January 7, 1998.\n\nOver the course of his career, Prelog accumulated a substantial record of institutional recognition. He received the Davy Medal, the Marcel Benoist Prize, and the Roger Adams Award in Organic Chemistry. He was elected a Foreign Member of the Royal Society, a mark of standing within the international scientific community. His connections to the cities of his early life were honored in a different register: he was made an honorary citizen of both Osijek and Sarajevo, acknowledging the man alongside the scientist.\n\nPrelog used Croatian and Slovene among the languages of his life, a reflection of the layered geographies his biography traversed. The Roger Adams Award in Organic Chemistry remains one of the named distinctions the chemical community conferred upon him, and the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, received in 1975, affirms the regard in which his work in organic chemistry was held.","The 1975 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, awarded to Vladimir Prelog, stands as the defining recognition of a career devoted to organic chemistry.",{"@graph":12,"@context":47},[13,24],{"@id":14,"name":6,"@type":15,"sameAs":16,"birthDate":21,"deathDate":22,"description":23},"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q83501","Person",[14,17,18,19,20],"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vladimir_Prelog","https://viaf.org/viaf/79100589/","https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n83827175","https://d-nb.info/gnd/119247496","1906-07-23","1998-01-07","Bosnian-Swiss chemist (1906-1998)",{"@type":25,"author":26,"headline":29,"isBasedOn":30,"mainEntity":31,"reviewedBy":32,"articleBody":9,"dateCreated":33,"dateModified":34,"additionalProperty":35,"creativeWorkStatus":46},"Article",{"name":27,"@type":28},"Editorial Team","Organization","Vladimir Prelog — biography",[14,17,19],{"@id":14},{"name":27,"@type":28},"2026-05-26T01:23:04.038951+00:00","2026-05-26T01:31:23.810581+00:00",[36,40,43],{"@type":37,"value":38,"propertyID":39},"PropertyValue","Q83501","wikidata",{"@type":37,"value":41,"propertyID":42},"0.960","factscore",{"@type":37,"value":44,"propertyID":45},"claude-sonnet-4-6-r1","draftModel","AI-drafted, auto-published","https://schema.org","vladimir-prelog",null,[],{"quotes":52,"pagination":141},[53,67,78,89,100,111,118,130],{"id":54,"quote_text":55,"author_id":5,"source_id":56,"has_image":57,"author":58,"source":59,"quote_tag":60,"commentary":66},2266286,"To grasp the essence of chirality, it is instructive to withdraw for a moment from the familiar three-dimensional world into a two-dimensional one, into a plane, and enquire what chirality means there.",4,false,{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":48,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":49},{},[61],{"id":62,"tag":63},5249627,{"id":64,"tag_name":65},12061,"familiar","**The Backstory**\nVladimir Prelog, a Nobel laureate in chemistry, penned these words in the mid-20th century, a time when the field of stereochemistry was rapidly evolving. His quote reflects the era's emphasis on understanding the fundamental principles of molecular structure and symmetry. Prelog's own research on chirality, a property of molecules that cannot be superimposed on its mirror image, was groundbreaking and influential.\n\n**The Hidden Insight**\nThe quote reveals a profound paradox: Prelog suggests that to grasp a complex concept like chirality, we must first simplify our understanding by reducing the dimensionality of our thinking. This counter-intuitive approach highlights the tension between the complexity of the physical world and the need for simplified models to comprehend it. By withdrawing from the familiar three-dimensional world, Prelog invites us to consider the limitations of our perception and the value of abstraction in scientific inquiry.\n\n**How to Use This**\nIn today's fast-paced, high-dimensional world, Prelog's insight can be applied by professionals and creatives who feel overwhelmed by the complexity of their tasks. By mentally \"withdrawing\" from the specifics of a problem and simplifying their thinking, individuals can gain a deeper understanding of the underlying principles and make more informed decisions.",{"id":68,"quote_text":69,"author_id":5,"source_id":56,"has_image":57,"author":70,"source":71,"quote_tag":72,"commentary":49},2266274,"The period 1924 to 1929 was spent studying chemistry at the Czech Institute of Technology in Prague, Czechoslovakia. The supervisor of my thesis was Professor Emil Votocek, one of the prominent founders of chemical research in Czechoslovakia.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":48,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":49},{},[73],{"id":74,"tag":75},5249620,{"id":76,"tag_name":77},34021,"chemical",{"id":79,"quote_text":80,"author_id":5,"source_id":56,"has_image":57,"author":81,"source":82,"quote_tag":83,"commentary":49},2266261,"The close of my studies with a degree of a Dr. Ing. in 1929 coincided with the great economic crisis, and I was not able to find an academic position. I was therefore very grateful for a position in the newly created laboratory of G.J. Driza in Prague where rare chemicals were produced on small scale.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":48,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":49},{},[84],{"id":85,"tag":86},5249604,{"id":87,"tag_name":88},10178,"academic",{"id":90,"quote_text":91,"author_id":5,"source_id":56,"has_image":57,"author":92,"source":93,"quote_tag":94,"commentary":49},2266242,"Many objects of our three-dimensional perceptual world are not only chiral but appear in nature in two versions, related at least ideally, as a chiral object and its mirror image.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":48,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":49},{},[95],{"id":96,"tag":97},5249588,{"id":98,"tag_name":99},10053,"appear",{"id":101,"quote_text":102,"author_id":5,"source_id":56,"has_image":57,"author":103,"source":104,"quote_tag":105,"commentary":49},2266240,"For many years, when still a Yugoslav citizen, I was already a Swiss patriot, and in 1959, I obtained Swiss citizenship. However, I consider myself a world citizen, and I am very grateful to my adopted country that it allows me to be one.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":48,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":49},{},[106],{"id":107,"tag":108},5249579,{"id":109,"tag_name":110},31966,"adopted",{"id":112,"quote_text":113,"author_id":5,"source_id":56,"has_image":57,"author":114,"source":115,"quote_tag":116,"commentary":117},2266229,"A planar geometrical figure with more than three vertices can be decomposed into a set of triangles, and it can be reconstructed from a set of triangles.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":48,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":49},{},[],"**The Backstory**\n\nThis quote is a testament to the brilliance of Vladimir Prelog, a Croatian-Swiss chemist who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1977. The era in which he made this statement would have been during his academic career at the University of Zurich or perhaps in one of his published papers. At that time, Prelog was immersed in the world of stereochemistry and the intricacies of molecular structure.\n\n**The Hidden Insight**\n\nOn the surface, this quote seems to be a straightforward assertion about the geometry of planar figures. However, it reveals a profound understanding of the fundamental nature of complexity. Prelog is highlighting that even the most intricate systems can be broken down into their constituent parts – in this case, triangles – and then reconstructed from those building blocks. This insight speaks to the tension between analysis (breaking down complex systems) and synthesis (reconstructing them).\n\n**How to Use This**\n\nIn today's fast-paced professional environment, applying Prelog's principle means recognizing that even the most daunting tasks can be tackled by decomposing them into manageable components. By identifying the key triangles – or building blocks – of a project, you can reconstruct it with greater clarity and efficiency, making it more feasible to complete.",{"id":119,"quote_text":120,"author_id":5,"source_id":56,"has_image":57,"author":121,"source":122,"quote_tag":123,"commentary":129},2266210,"An object is chiral if it cannot be brought into congruence with its mirror image by translation and rotation.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":48,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":49},{},[124],{"id":125,"tag":126},5249558,{"id":127,"tag_name":128},98308,"brought","**The Backstory**\nVladimir Prelog, a renowned Swiss chemist, coined this definition of chirality in the mid-20th century. At the time, Prelog was actively engaged in researching the structure and properties of organic compounds, which laid the foundation for his Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1975. His work during this period was marked by a deep understanding of the intricacies of molecular symmetry.\n\n**The Hidden Insight**\nThe quote reveals a profound paradox: the concept of chirality highlights that even in the most seemingly symmetrical systems, there can exist an inherent asymmetry. This asymmetry is not a result of external factors but rather an intrinsic property of the object itself. This tension between symmetry and asymmetry underscores the complex relationship between structure and properties in chemistry, mirroring the intricate balance between order and disorder in the natural world.\n\n**How to Use This**\nTo apply this mindset in a modern context, consider that even in the most seemingly harmonious systems, there can exist hidden asymmetries that significantly impact their behavior. When approaching a complex problem or project, seek to identify these underlying asymmetries, and explore how they can be leveraged to create novel solutions or products.",{"id":131,"quote_text":132,"author_id":5,"source_id":56,"has_image":57,"author":133,"source":134,"quote_tag":135,"commentary":49},2266193,"I was born on July 23rd, 1906, in Sarajevo in the province of Bosnia, which then belonged to the Austrian-Hungarian Monarchy and later, in 1918, became part of Yugoslavia.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":48,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":49},{},[136],{"id":137,"tag":138},5249539,{"id":139,"tag_name":140},112118,"became",{"currentPage":142,"totalPages":142,"totalItems":8,"itemsPerPage":143},1,10]