诺贝尔病是指某些诺贝尔奖得主在晚年倾向于支持科学上不成立的观点和想法的现象 [1]。研究人员分析认为，诺贝尔奖可能强化了获奖者的确认偏差，使其在自身专业领域外的话题上过度自信 [1]。
历史上出现过多个典型案例。1954年化学奖与1962年和平奖得主莱纳斯·鲍林每日摄入维生素C超过推荐日摄入量120倍以上 [1]。1962年医学奖得主詹姆斯·沃森自2000年以来公开声称黑人平均智力低于白人 [1]。2008年医学奖得主卢克·蒙塔尼耶在COVID-19疫情期间宣传SARS-CoV-2是从实验室故意制造并泄露的观点 [1]。
获奖者本身也对这一现象有所察觉。2001年诺贝尔医学奖得主保罗·纳斯警告后来的获奖者不要相信"自己在几乎所有事情上都是专家" [1]。1976年诺贝尔经济学奖得主米尔顿·弗里德曼则指出，诺贝尔奖带来的关注"令人高兴，但也具有腐蚀性" [1]。
Nobel Disease describes a phenomenon in which some Nobel Prize winners in their later years have advocated for scientifically unsupported or discredited viewpoints and ideas [1]. Researchers analyzing this pattern suggest that the Nobel Prize may reinforce confirmation bias in laureates, leading them to overconfidence when addressing topics outside their primary field of expertise [1].
The trend has manifested across multiple disciplines. Chemist Linus Pauling, a Nobel laureate in Chemistry in 1954 and Peace Prize recipient in 1962, consumed vitamin C at levels exceeding the recommended daily intake by more than 120 times [1]. Physicist James Watson, who won the 1962 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, has publicly claimed since 2000 that Black people have lower average intelligence than white people [1]. Virologist Luc Montagnier, the 2008 Nobel Prize recipient in Physiology or Medicine, promoted the theory during the COVID-19 pandemic that SARS-CoV-2 was deliberately engineered and leaked from a laboratory [1].
Recognition of this pattern has prompted reflection among laureates themselves. Paul Nurse, the 2001 Nobel Prize recipient in Physiology or Medicine, warned subsequent award winners against believing they "are experts in almost everything" [1]. Similarly, economist Milton Friedman, who received the 1976 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences, characterized the attention accompanying the award as "gratifying, but also corrosive" [1].