Nobel laureates
Frans Emil Sillanpää, The Nobel Prize 1939 in literature
Frans Emil SIllanpää received the Nobel Prize in literature in 1939. He originally wished to become a medical doctor and studied at the University of Helsinki in 1908 – 1913. He never graduated but published instead his first novel in 1916. His best known works include “Hurskas kurjuus” (The devout misery) 1919, “The Maid Silja” and “People in the Summer Night”.
Artturi Ilmari Virtanen, The Nobel Prize 1945 in chemistry
Artturi Ilmari Virtanen (1895–1973) was a biochemistry pioneer who received the Nobel Prize in chemistry in 1945 for his inventions in agricultural and nutrition chemistry. A.I.Virtanen developed in 1928 together with his colleague Henning Karström the AIV fodder that significantly improved the preservation of fodder and the quality of milk. Virtanen served as professor of chemistry at the University of Helsinki from 1939 to 1948.
Ragnar Granit, The Nobel Prize 1967 in medicine
Professor of Physiology Ragnar Granit (1900–1991) received in 1967 the Nobel Prize in medicine and physiology for his research on physiology of vision and color vision. He took his M.D. in 1927 at the Helsinki university where he continued his studies in physiology. In 1940 Granit relocated permanently to Sweden. He still spent all his summers in Korpo, Finland.
Bengt Holmström - The Nobel Prize 2016 in economical sciences
University of Helsinki alumnus Bengt Holmström (b.1949) was granted Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel 2016 together with Oliver Hart (b. 1948) for their work on contract theory. Holmström received his MA at the Helsinki university in 1972 and his doctorate at the Stanford university in 1978. In 1994 he was named the Paul A. Samuelson professor in ecomics at the MIT.