Does playing provide vital stimulus for both young and old? This is how Louis Ignarro describes a model train car that he made:
“This is a freight car from my current toy train set. As a very inquisitive young child growing up in New York City, I was fascinated with model toy trains. My father bought me my first train set when I was 8 years old. Being a carpenter by trade, my dad built a large table in our basement for me to build a model train layout. Dad was quite impressed with my ability to learn electrical wiring, modelling scenery, and weathering objects at the age of only 8 years. He fuelled my passion for this hobby by buying me more trains on a regular basis over the next few years, which led to expansion of my layout throughout the entire basement. Such a technically demanding hobby motivated me to study hard in school, especially science and mathematics. After a time lapse of 55 years, I’ve taken up the demanding hobby once again, and love it. Represented here is a freight boxcar, which I’ve weathered to simulate the original 1944 vintage boxcar.”
Louis Ignarro donated the freight car to the Nobel Prize Museum in 2017.
This is how Louis Ignarro describes this tie with a pattern of Viagra tablets:
“This special tie was fabricated just for me and presented to me by a representative of the Pfizer Pharmaceutical Company in New York City. The tie subtly depicts dozens of blue ‘VIAGRA’ tablets scattered throughout the tie. The significance of the tie is that my laboratory, in 1992, reported that the long sought-after neurotransmitter that causes penile erection is nitric oxide (NO). Based on our work, Pfizer developed and marketed Viagra, which works by increasing the erectile action of NO. Interestingly, Viagra was approved and marketed in April 1998, and the Nobel Prize for our research on nitric oxide was announced only a few months later, in October 1998. Amusingly, I am often referred to as the Father of Viagra.”
Louis Ignarro donated the tie to the Nobel Prize Museum in 2017.
This is how Louis Ignarro describes this tie with a pattern of chemical structures:
“This special tie was fabricated just for me and presented to me at a Nitric Oxide conference held in 1999 in celebration of the 1998 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. The tie depicts a pattern of chemical structures, also showing the chemical symbol for nitric oxide, which is NO. I wore this tie at many nitric oxide conferences that followed. The significance of the tie is that my laboratory originally discovered in 1986 that our bodies produce NO to maintain cardiovascular health. This discovery resulted in the Nobel Prize.”
Louis Ignarro donated the tie to the Nobel Prize Museum in 2017.
Music and science play an important part in Louis Ignarro’s life. This is how he describes his accordion:
“This is a 1944 model Fontanella Pesaro accordion made originally in Napoli, Italy, the birthplace of my father. My parents presented it to me on my 6th birthday in May of 1947 in New York City, where we resided. After quickly learning to play by ear without any instruction, my parents had me take professional lessons. Within a few years, I became proficient enough to play at traditional Italian weddings and parties. Playing the accordion in front of large crowds gave me greater confidence to interact with adults. Moreover, learning to play music composed by Vivaldi, Mozart, and Bach led me to appreciate the scientific approach taken by such scholars in composing their masterpieces. Playing such music on my accordion motivated me toward the field of science. In the 40 plus years of my scientific career, I routinely listened to the compositions of Vivaldi, Mozart and Bach while working. I attribute my career success in large part to that little accordion that I started playing at the age of 6 years.”
Louis Ignarro donated the accordion to the Nobel Prize Museum in 2017.
