At the age of 12, I developed an intense interest in mathematics. On exposure to algebra, I was fascinated by simultaneous equations and read ahead of the class to the end of the book.

Looking through the list of earlier Nobel laureates, I note a large number with whom I became acquainted and with whom I interacted during those years as they passed through Cambridge.

I was a close observer of the developments in molecular biology.

From an early age I was told that I was expected to do more than continue to run a small business. Education was important and seen as a way of moving forward.

I am delighted to have had students, friends and colleagues in so many nations and to have learned so much of what I know from them. This Nobel Award honours them all.

On my return to Pittsburgh, I resolved to go back to the fundamental problems of electronic structure that I had contemplated abstractly many years earlier.

Leaving England was a painful decision, and we still have some regrets about it. However, at that time, the research environment for theoretical chemistry was clearly better in the U.S.

I had changed from being a mathematician to a practicing scientist. I was increasingly embarassed that I could no longer follow some of the more modern branches of pure mathematics.

Life with a scientist who is often changing jobs and is frequently away at meetings and on lecture tours is not easy. Without a secure home base, I could not have made much progress.

In the war, most young men were inducted into the armed forces at the age of 17. A group of students was permitted to attend university before taking part in wartime research projects.

Our children were mostly brought up and educated in the Churchill suburb east of Pittsburgh. Each summer, we took them back to England for an extended period.

True beauty is a rayThat springs from the sacred depths of the soul, and illuminates the body, just as lifesprings from the kernel of a stone andgives colour and scent to a flower.

You need to let the little things that would ordinarily bore you suddenly thrill you.

There's already been some trouble for Osama bin Laden in the afterlife. There was a mix up and he was greeted by 72 vegans.

I have found the study of organisms to be a truly exciting experience, always interesting and sometimes humbling.

If you don't climb the mountain, you can't see the view

It hasn't escaped my notice that you only compliment me when you're intoxicated.

I strongly believe the DREAM Act should require the completion of a degree.

If you never encounter anything in your community that offends you, then you are not living in a free society.

It is very unusual for a country to ask guys who are not politicians to come and run the country.

The greatest weakness of most humans is their hesitancy to tell others how much they love them while they're alive.