Why Does Life Use Only One Hand? The 2026 Nobel Prize in Chemistry Explained

The 2026 Nobel Prize in Chemistry goes to French chemist Henri B. Kagan and Japanese chemist Kenso Soai "for the discovery of non-linear effects and autocatalysis in asymmetric organic synthesis." Why do molecules come in left- and right-handed versions? How did Louis Pasteur discover chirality with a pair of tweezers? What did the thalidomide tragedy teach us? And how did Kagan's "unexpected curve" and Soai's self-copying molecule help answer a century-old question: why does life use only one hand? [CHAPTERS] 0:00 Left Hand, Right Hand: The 2026 Nobel Prize in Chemistry 0:40 The Prize: One French, One Japanese 1:37 Molecules Have Hands: It Started with Pasteur's Tweezers 2:43 Why It Matters: One Hand Heals, the Other May Harm 3:56 Henri Kagan: The Pioneer the Nobel Missed 4:52 An Unexpected Curve: The Non-linear Effect 6:06 Frank's Prediction: A Molecule That Copies Itself 6:36 Kenso Soai: A Determined Search 7:05 The Molecule That Copies Itself: The Soai Reaction 8:19 Why Life Uses One Hand: Meaning and Applications 9:04 Epilogue: A Tiny Imbalance #NobelPrize #Chemistry #Chirality #Science #GreatMindsSimply